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<*? 







THE PIONEER BOYS ON 
THE GREAT LAKES 



OR: ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 

















THE YOUNG PIONEER SERIES 

BY HARRISON ADAMS 

Illustrated by Charles Livingston Bull 



THE PIONEER BOYS OF. THE OHIO, 

Or: Clearing the Wilderness . . . SI.25 

THE PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT 
LAKES, Or: On the Trail of the Iroquois 1.25 

Other Volumes in Preparation 

L. C. PAGE & COMPANY 
53 Beacon Street, Boston, Mass. 



fomtg Jfomm 

THE PIONEER BOYS 

on tijp 

GREAT LAKES 

OR: ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 
By HARRISON ADAMS 

Author of “ The Pioneer Boys of the Ohio,” etc. 



Illustrated and Decorated by 
CHARLES LIVINGSTON BULL 

L. C. PAGE & COMPANY 
BOSTON MDCCCCXII 

















L. 


Copyright, 1912, by 
C. Page & Company. 

(INCORPORATED) 


All rights reserved 


First Impression, 
September, 1912 


THE COLONIAL PRESS 
C. H. SIMONDS & CO. 
BOSTON, U. S. A. 



P < * r 

Is CJ.A327076 

'll .. . 








PREFACE 


To My Young Readers: Many of those 
among you who have read the first volume of 
“ The Young Pioneer Series ” may be pleased 
to again make the acquaintance of the two 
border lads, Bob and Sandy, as well as others 
who figured in the earlier tale. Among these 
might be mentioned the Irish trapper, Pat 
O’Mara; Kate, the pretty little sister of our 
two heroes; Blue Jacket, a young Shawanee 
warrior, destined later to become famous in 
history; and Simon Kenton, perhaps the best 
known among the friends of Daniel Boone. 

In this new story concerning the adventures 
of David Armstrong’s boys I trust that you will 
find much to interest you. It is my earnest 
hope that such lads as read these stories of 
daring deeds along the frontier, in those early 
days of the history of our country, may not only 
find them intensely entertaining, but instructive 
as well. 

I have tried to show what a sterling type of 
character, even in young boys, the stern neces- 


VI 


PREFACE 


sities of those perilous days produced. Self- 
reliance was absolutely needed in order to suc¬ 
cessfully cope with the multitude of dangers by 
which the pioneers of the Ohio and Kentucky 
border were surrounded. 

And, when you have finished the present vol¬ 
ume, I can only hope that you will agree with 
me in saying that Bob and Sandy were splendid 
specimens of undaunted boyhood, and a credit 
to their Scotch ancestry. I also trust that you 
will be eager to meet them again at no very dis¬ 
tant time in other fields of daring, whither the 
roving spirit of Sandy, who has taken Simon 
Kenton as his ideal hero, may, in company with 
his brother, be tempted to rove. 

Harrison Adams. 

August 10th, 1912. 





CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

Preface . 


PAGE 

V 

L 

The Alarm Bell .... 


1 

II. 

Seeking Refuge at the Blockhouse 

. 12 

III. 

The Bee Tree .... 


. 24 

IV. 

Watching for the Honey Thief 


. 40 

V. 

A Strange Bear Hunt 


. 49 

VI. 

Serious News. 


. 60 

VII. 

The Three French Trappers . 


. 69 

VIII. 

Simon Kenton, the Borderer . 


. 83 

IX. 

The Moccasin Tracks that Toed 

- IN 

. 92 

X. 

Blue Jacket’s Warning 


. 106 

XI. 

Tending Their Traps . 


. 115 

XII. 

The Cruel Parting 


. 127 

XIII. 

The Grand Hunt .... 


. 138 

XIV. 

Black Beaver Strikes . 


. 150 

XV. 

On the Trail of the Iroquois . 


. 164 

XVI. 

The Bark of the Red Fox 


. 173 

XVII. 

Perils of the Wilderness . 


. 185 

XVIII. 

The Big Water at Last 


. 197 

XIX. 

A Bitter Disappointment . 


. 208 

XX. 

Pontiac in the Council f , 

vii 

• 

. 220 

















CONTENTS 


• • • 
Vlll 


CHAPTER 

XXI. 

Prisoners .... 


PAGE 

. 235 

XXII. 

The Tables Turned . 

• • • 

. 244 

XXIII. 

The Cavern of the Water Spirits 

. 255 

XXIV. 

Kenton’s Life with the 

Indians . 

. 266 

XXV. 

A Birch - bark Message 

• • • 

. 278 

XXVI. 

The War Dance . 

• • • 

. 290 

XXVII. 

Pontiac’s Peril 

• • • 

. 301 

XXVIII. 

When All Seemed Lost 

• • • 

. 312 

XXIX. 

The Word of an Indian Chief 

. 323 

XXX. 

Safe at Last . 


. 335 








LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

“ ‘ Keep against the rock, all! ’ said Kenton, who 

was in the lead ” ( See page 261) . Frontispiece 

“ ‘ Whoop! there she goes! ’ ” . 40 

“ The bear all the while kept on creeping out 

CLOSER AND CLOSER ”. 56 

“ Plainly marked against the face of the harvest 

MOON, THEY COULD SEE THE HEAD AND SHOUL- 
DERS ON AN INDIAN BRAVE! ” .... 174 

“ The boys saw the sheen of his satiny sides as 

HE SPRANG ”. 186 

" Dancing as they circled the flames . . 222 

















The Pioneer Boys on the 
Great Lakes 

» 

-♦- 

CHAPTER I 

THE ALARM BELL 

“Hark! Bob, what can all that shouting 
mean! ” 

“ I’m sure I don’t know, Sandy.” 

“ It comes from the other side of the settle¬ 
ment, doesn’t it!” 

“ True enough, brother; for you see the wind 
carries the sounds; and that is now in the 
west.” 

“Oh! I wonder what it can be; and if it 
means trouble for us, after all these months of 
peace! ” 

The two Armstrong boys, Robert and Alex¬ 
ander, who usually went by the shorter names 

of Bob and Sandy, stood resting on their hoes 

l 



2 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


while listening anxiously to the rapidly increas¬ 
ing clamor. 

In the clearing close by stood the cabin of the 
Ohio settler, David Armstrong. The time was 
close to early fall, at a time when the strained 
relations between England and her A merican 
colonies had almost reached the breaking-point. 
But away out here, far removed from civiliza¬ 
tion, the hardy pioneers were only concerned 
regarding possible uprisings of the red men; 
and the widening of their fields, where corn 
might be cultivated profitably, and tobacco 
grown. 

Early in the preceding spring the Armstrong 
family, consisting of David, his gentle wife, 
Mary, the two lads, now fifteen and sixteen 
years of age, and a young sister named Kate, 
had left their Virginia home to dare the un¬ 
known perils of the wilderness in the hope of 
bettering their condition. 1 

During the long summer, now drawing to a 
close, the dozen or more families constituting 
the little settlement on the bank of the Ohio 
had been joined by a number of new arrivals, 
so that by degrees they formed a strong colony. 

Some of the fears that had oppressed the 

x See “ The Pioneer Boys of the Ohio.” 



THE ALARM BELL 


3 


more timid of the first settlers now began grad¬ 
ually to vanish, as they saw their numbers in¬ 
creasing, with a corresponding addition to the 
fighting men of the border post. 

Daniel Boone had been an early friend of 
these Ohio settlers. He it was who had really 
piloted them to this fair site for a town, on the 
hill which afforded a magnificent view up and 
down the beautiful river. 

Taking the advice of the famous pioneer, a 
strong blockhouse had been built as soon as 
possible. This was completely surrounded by 
a high and stout palisade, behind which the de¬ 
fenders of the place might find shelter from the 
enemy in case of an attack. 

Thus, even while peace seemed to be hovering 
over the section, these cautious settlers were 
constantly prepared for any Indian uprising; 
and there was even a code of signals arranged, 
whereby those most remote from the central 
station were to be warned in case of need. 

Twice during the summer Daniel Boone had 
favored them with brief visits, while on his way 
back and forth between the distant Virginia 
plantations and his own settlement far down 
in the heart of Kentucky. 

But Boone had little time for visiting that 



4 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


particular season. While the Armstrongs and 
their neighbors were enjoying a comparatively 
peaceful summer, the reverse was the rule 
around the settlement that had been pushed far 
out on the frontier line and located at Boones- 
borough. 

Enraged by the boldness * of these pioneers, 
the Shawanees, aided by some of the Delawares, 
and even Cherokees, made desperate efforts to 
wipe out the gallant little bands that had been 
drawn to the outposts of civilization by the 
prospect of the rich land. 

Rumors reached the Ohio settlers from time 
to time of the serious difficulties their fellow 
settlers were encountering. These served to 
keep them on their guard, so that they did not 
fall into a false sense of security. 

Whenever Bob and Sandy Armstrong went 
into the great forests to seek game, or discover 
likely places where their traps might be set to 
advantage in the approaching autumn, they 
were always warned before leaving home to 
keep constantly on the watch for Indians. If 
they met with one or more red men they were 
never to fully trust any professions of friend¬ 
ship, for the settlers of that day did not have a 
high opinion of an Indian’s word. 



THE ALARM BELL 


5 


These two lads were fairly well versed in the 
ways of woodsmen. They had always been 
accustomed to roaming through the forest after 
game; and, besides, they had received many a 
hint concerning the secrets of the wilds from a 
genial Irish trapper, named Pat O’Mara. 

This worthy was in a measure possessed of 
the same unrest that caused Daniel Boone to 
keep almost constantly on the move. In the 
case of O’Mara, however, it was simply a desire 
to see new sights, and encounter novel perils, 
that caused him to wander through unknown 
countries, rather than any keen longing to open 
up rich farming lands to civilization. 

Occasionally the Irish trapper dropped in un¬ 
expectedly at the Armstrong cabin; but after a 
few days’ rest his uneasy spirit would again 
cause him to disappear. 

This very morning, while they worked in 
their little patch of ground, Bob and Sandy 
had been talking about their quaint Irish 
friend, and wondering where he might happen 
to be at that time, since they had not seen him 
for over a month. 

When the new settlement was in its infancy 
the Armstrong boys, feeling that conditions had 
changed, began to alter their dress. It was one 



6 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


thing to be living in Virginia, not so very far 
from the sea coast; and quite another to be 
hundreds of miles inland, beyond the great 
chain of mountains that served as a barrier be¬ 
tween them and the oppressive tax collectors of 
the king across the water. 

The homespun woollen garments gave way to 
those which nearly all hunters and forest 
rangers of that day delighted in. Thus, while 
both lads boasted of tanned buckskin tunics, 
and nether garments, fringed and ornamented 
with colored porcupine quills, besides real In¬ 
dian moccasins, after the manner of the attire 
worn by Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton and the 
witty Irish trapper, Bob also owned a cap made 
of coonskin, with the tails dangling down be¬ 
hind; while his brother’s was fashioned from 
the cured skins of gray squirrels. 

They had, of course, left the outer garments 
at the cabin when starting out, that morning, 
to accomplish a little hard work in the fields 
that had been planted earlier in the season, for 
the day was quite warm. 

Besides the sound of the ax, or it might be 
the crash of a falling tree, there were not many 
loud noises heard as a rule about the settle¬ 
ment. Sometimes a dog might give tongue as 



THE ALARM BELL 


7 


he chased after a rabbit that had ventured too 
near the borders of the colony; again, a proud 
rooster, that had been carried so carefully over 
these hundreds of miles of rough country to his 
new home, would wake the echoes by his clarion 
crow. It was a busy time for the settlers, and 
even the older children were compelled to do 
their share of labor in these first few months 
on the Ohio. 

So it can be easily understood that, when the 
Armstrong lads heard that constantly increas¬ 
ing series of loud shouts, they felt the blood 
leaping through their veins both in curiosity 
and alarm. 

Sandy, always impulsive, threw his clumsy 
hoe to the ground, and, jumping over to the 
adjacent tree, against which their flint-lock 
muskets leaned, caught up his own weapon with 
trembling fingers. 

Bob was the more composed of the two, and 
it was his voice that now restrained his brother. 

“ Wait, Sandy,” he said, “ we are not so far 
away from the cabin but what we can reach it 
quickly . 9 9 

“ But, listen to all that noise, Bob,” returned 
the other, fingering his gun eagerly. “ Surely 
something has happened. Perhaps another 



8 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


tree has fallen the wrong way, and this time 
done worse than what happened to onr father. ’’ 

The matter to which Sandy referred had been 
an unfortunate accident whereby David Arm¬ 
strong had barely escaped with his life. A 
tree he was chopping had by some means 
twisted around in falling, so that the settler 
was caught under the heavy limbs. Only by 
what seemed a miracle had his life been spared. 
As it was, he still had an arm in a sling, and 
was unable to keep up the work he had planned, 
so that a double duty devolved upon his sons. 

44 No, T don’t think that can be the trouble,” 
continued Bob. slowlv. “ I heard no crash of a 
tree. Besides, I fear that there is a note of 
alarm in the cries; it is as if men were answer¬ 
ing each other. There! that time I could al¬ 
most hear what was being shouted, only the 
breeze changed a second too soon.” 

“ Could it be Daniel Boone who has come, or 
perhaps that young ranger, Simon Kenton, 
whom you and I liked so much when we saw 
him long ago? ” suggested Sandy, with new 
eagerness; for, to tell the truth, he had greatly 
admired Kenton when the young friend of 
Colonel Boone visited the new settlement, and 
he secretly aspired to follow in his footsteps. 



THE ALARM BELL 


9 


44 No, I am afraid it cannot be that,” Bob 
went on, soberly. “ They might shout in that 
case; but there would be joy, and not fear, ex¬ 
pressed. Hark! there it rises again! You 
have keen hearing, Sandy; did you not make 
out what our neighbor, Peleg Green, was call¬ 
ing then ? ’ * 

Sandy turned a pale face toward his com¬ 
panion. These two boys had been through 
numerous perils in common, and were pos¬ 
sessed of a great measure of courage; but, 
after all, they were only half-grown lads, and 
the sudden coming of this unknown peril filled 
them with dread. 

“ I am not sure, Bob,” he replied, with quiv¬ 
ering lips; “ but I believe I could catch some¬ 
thing that sounded like — Indians!” 

His brother nodded his head at these words. 

“ I did not like to say so, for fear I might 
have been mistaken; but it sounded like that 
to me,” he said, gravely. 

Now it was Bob who dropped his hoe, and 
stooped to possess himself of his gun. Care¬ 
fully he looked to see that the priming was in 
order, since everything always depended upon 
a small pinch of powder being in the pan when 
the time for firing arrived. The flint never 



10 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


failed to strike sparks; but, lacking powder, 
these would be of no avail. 

“ Had we not better run for the house? ” 
suggested Sandy, glancing over across the field 
toward the cabin, where the smoke arose from 
the clay chimney, the whole forming a peaceful 
scene in the sunshine of that late summer morn¬ 
ing. 

“ They have not heard the sounds yet, I 
think,’’ said Bob, as he failed to note any signs 
of excitement around the log cabin; “ and it 
would be cruel to frighten mother, if there is no 
need. Let us wait a bit longer, Sandy. We can 
easily cover that little distance if there is neces¬ 
sity.” 

So the boys continued to stand there, grip¬ 
ping their guns, and waiting. Meanwhile it 
can be readily understood that both lads turned 
anxious eyes in all directions. 

“ It seems to me the shouts are not so loud 
as before,” said Bob, presently. 

“ That might be because the running men 
have reached their homes,” quickly remarked 
his brother. 

“ Perhaps we had better go to the cabin. 
We can say we came in for fresh water, if 
mother wonders at seeing us. After all it may 



THE ALARM BELL 


11 


amount to nothing; ’ ’ but, hardly had Bob Arm¬ 
strong completed this sentence, than a new 
sound came to their ears tnat sent them running 
like mad in the direction of the humble home in 
the clearing. 

High above all else came the harsh notes of 
the alarm bell that had been hung in the block¬ 
house to give warning of sudden impending 
danger! 



CHAPTER II 


SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 

“ Look! there is father coming out! He has 
heard it now! ” gasped Sandy, as he ran. 

“ And with poor little mother close behind 
him, waving her arms to us to hurry. But 
where can Kate be, do you think? ” asked Bob, 
as a sudden suspicion came flashing into his 
mind. 

“ Perhaps at the spring. She often sits 
there, and plays. Surely she could not be in 
the cabin, and fail to follow mother,” his 
brother declared. 

“ Keep straight on, and I’ll go to see! ” 
called Bob, suddenly turning aside from the 
straight course they had been pursuing. 

Sandy hesitated, for he wished to accompany 
his older brother; but, during their many 
hunts, he had come to look upon Bob as the 
leader, and gradually fallen into the way of 
obeying any instructions the other might see 
fit to give. So he continued on to the cabin, 
where his parents were waiting so anxiously. 


SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 13 


Mary Armstrong had darted back into the 
large front room, and now once more came into 
view, carrying the settler’s trusty gun. Though 
his left arm was still in a sling, David Arm¬ 
strong gripped the weapon with determination 
written on his sun-browned face. In defence 
of his loved ones he would forget his injuries 
for the time being, and, if need be, fight des¬ 
perately. 

Meanwhile, what of Bob? 

The spring from which the Armstrongs se¬ 
cured their drinking water bubbled up from the 
mossy ground under the trees at some little dis¬ 
tance from the cabin. It was reached by a cir¬ 
cuitous path, well beaten from frequent pil¬ 
grimages to and fro. 

Jumping over bushes that intervened, for he 
was too eager to follow the winding path even 
Yvdien he struck it, Bob quickly came in sight of 
the spring. His heart was almost in his throat 
as he discovered the well known sun-bonnet of 
his pretty sister, Kate, hanging to the bush 
that overspread the spring; but failed to see 
the slightest sign of the girl. 

Cold with the fear that oppressed him, he 
continued to advance. What if Kate had al¬ 
ready been carried off by some wandering red 



14 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


man? With the vast wilderness stretching all 
around for hundreds of miles, how would they 
ever know where to look for her? 

44 Kate! Oh! Kate! ’’ he called, stopping 
short in his suspense to listen. 

Then, to his great delight, a voice answered 
him; and the girl arose from a shady nook 
where she was accustomed to amuse herself. 

Apparently she had paid no attention to the 
brazen sound of the alarm bell, being so 
wrapped up in her play. But, when Bob sprang 
to her side, and caught one of her hands in his, 
the girl’s face grew white with fear. 

44 Oh! what is it, Bob? ” she cried. 44 What 
has happened? The bell — I didn’t notice that 
it was sounding! Is there a fire? Has any one 
been hurt like father was? ” 

44 It must mean Indians! ” answered Bob, as 
he hurried her along. 

After that dreadful word had passed his lips 
there was no further need of urging. Kate’s 
feet seemed shod with fear, and she even led 
him in the race for the cabin. There she was 
enfolded in the motherly arms and hurried 
within, to be hastily burdened with several 
small packages in case they were compelled to 
flee for safety to the blockhouse. 



SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 1.5 


David Armstrong and the two lads stood 
without, guns in hand, listening. The bell had 
now stopped its wild clamor; but they knew 
that if it again burst out it would mean the 
worst. And thus, with every sense on the alert, 
they waited. 

While peace had so long hung over the 
favored settlement on the Ohio, those who com¬ 
posed the little colony knew well what an In¬ 
dian attack must signify. True, few if any of 
them had had more than the one experience 
when the pack train had been assailed in the 
night while they were on the trail; but they 
were not apt to forget the fierce whoops of the 
savages, on that occasion, which had been ring¬ 
ing in their ears ever since. 

David had built his cabin after the most ap¬ 
proved fashion known among pioneers of that 
perilous time. The walls had loopholes be¬ 
tween the logs in certain places, where guns 
could be thrust out and fired into the faces of 
advancing foes. Even the small windows were 
secured with heavy shutters, fastened from 
within, so that it would require considerable 
skill and labor to effect an opening, should the 
inmates be besieged. 

But, of course, it was not the plan of David 



16 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


and his fellow settlers to remain thus isolated, 
if an opportunity came whereby they could 
gather in the blockhouse, which was always 
kept prepared for the reception of the col¬ 
ony. 

Mary was now busying herself in closing and 
fastening these shutters. Bob sprang to assist 
his mother, ever mindful of her comfort, for he 
was a thoughtful lad at all times. Impulsive 
Sandy had just as warm a heart, but was more 
inclined to be careless and short sighted. 

Then, without warning, once more that fear¬ 
ful sound broke forth! The bell was giving out 
its second call, which meant that every soul 
within hearing would do well to hasten without 
delay to the central point. 

Perhaps, after all, it might prove to be a 
needless alarm; but, under the circumstances, 
no one could take the chance of being caught 
napping. For aught they knew those cruel 
Shawanees had finally overcome the valiant de¬ 
fenders of far distant Boonesborough, and, de¬ 
termined to wipe out every settlement west of 
the Alleghanies, were now advancing north to 
the Ohio River region with their victorious 
bands. 

“ Wife, that settles it! ” said David Arm- 



SEEKING KEFtJGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 17 


strong, firmly; “ we must go at once to the 
fort! ” 

Each of them knew what was to be done. 
They had talked this thing over on more than 
one occasion, and arranged a system that was 
to be followed out in case of need. 

The heavy puncheon door was closed, and 
locked with a ponderous padlock that had been 
carried into the wilderness when they emigrated 
from their former Virginia home. This being 
done, the little party started on a run across 
the open field. 

How gloomy, and filled with mysterious 
perils, did that dense forest seem now! It was 
so easy to people its aisles with creeping, 
treacherous foes, armed with bows and arrows, 
with guns sold by the French traders to be used 
against the English-speaking colonists, together 
with tomahawks and scalping knives. 

And, when they had entered among the tall 
trees that grew so close together, how every 
slight movement along the trail made them 
quiver with sudden dread, in the belief that 
they were about to be confronted by a painted 
horde of Indians, seeking their lives! 

The blockhouse, fortunately, was not very far 
distant. When they began to catch glimpses 




18 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


of it through the trees the hopes of the Arm¬ 
strongs once more mounted upward. 

By now they had overtaken other fugitives, 
also making for the safety of the central point, 
and laden with the most precious of their pos¬ 
sessions, which consisted for the most part of 
some family heirloom which they dreaded to 
have go up in flame and smoke, if the savages 
put their deserted cabins to the torch, as was 
their universal custom. 

When they reached the palisade they found 
an excited crowd. The women and children 
were hurried inside as fast as they arrived; 
while the defenders of the post clustered 
near the gates, engaged in anxious com¬ 
munion. 

“ Who saw the Indians? ” asked David, al¬ 
ways seeking information; and both of his boys 
hovered near, with ears wide open to catch 
every word that might be dropped. 

Anthony Brady, who exercised something of 
the characteristics of a commander among the 
settlers, by virtue of his age and experience, 
made immediate answer. 

“ Old Reuben Jacks, the forest ranger, spied 
the bloodthirsty villains,” he said. “ He came 
first to my cabin, which is further away than the 



SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 19 


rest. Then, as we ran, we shouted warning, 
and others, who heard, took it up. Here he 
comes now. Ask him how many of the red 
scoundrels he sighted, neighbors.’’ 

The man in question was clad in greasy buck¬ 
skin garments. He had no family; but stopped 
with different persons whenever he came to the 
settlement. But, after the manner of the Irish 
trapper, old Reuben could not long remain in 
one place, and thus he spent most of his time 
roaming. 

David quickly cornered old Reuben. The 
forest ranger was a quaint fellow, who carried 
one of those long-barrelled rifles which were so 
deadly in the hands of a good marksman. He 
had several rows of nicks on the stock, and the 
boys had always been curious to know whether 
these signified the various wild animals, like 
bears, and panthers, and wildcats, that he had 
shot with the weapon, or something perhaps 
more terrible. But Old Reuben would never 
tell. 

“ Where did you see the Indians, Reuben? ” 
asked David, as others of the men began to 
cluster around, filled with curiosity to know the 
worst. 

“ I reckons as how ’twar ’bout three fur- 



20 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


longs t’other side o’ Cap’n Brady’s cabin I 
see ’em,” replied the old ranger in a mum¬ 
bling tone, due to the absence of teeth in his 
jaws. 

“ How many were there? ” continued Mr. 
Armstrong. 

“ I see three before I turned and run,” 
Reuben, answered. “ But the bushes was 
shakin’ like they mout ’a’ ben a host more 
a’cornin’. They was armed with bows an’ ar- 
rers, an’ I dead sartin saw a scalp hangin’ at 
the belt o ’ one on ’em. ’ ’ 

Bob and Sandy exchanged horrified glances 
at hearing this. They had themselves passed 
through quite an experience with the hostile 
Indians early in the season, when one of the 
brothers was captured and carried away to the 
village of the Shawanees, from which he had 
finally been rescued, after considerable peril 
had been encountered. 

To hear that Indians had been seen so close 
to the settlement caused a thrill to pass through 
the heart of the boldest man; and the hands 
that clutched their guns tightened convulsively 
on the weapons. 

“ Were they Shawanees, Reuben? ” David 
continued to ask. 



SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 21 


The veteran ranger shook his head, with its 
straggly gray hair that fell down on his 
shoulders from under the beaver cap. 

4 ‘ Delaware, I reckons, ’’ he said, simply; and 
they believed that so experienced a woodsman 
could not be mistaken, for there were many 
characteristics that distinguished the different 
tribes, even among the famous Six Nations or 
Iroquois. 

44 Are all here! ” asked Captain Brady at 
this juncture; for they could no longer see any 
sign of new arrivals hurrying toward the block¬ 
house. 

A hurried count assured them that all fam¬ 
ilies had reached the stockade, with one excep¬ 
tion. 

“ The - Bancrofts are missing! ” cried one 
man. 

“ And their clearing is almost as far away as 
mine! This looks bad, men! ” said Brady, with 
a grave expression on his set features. 

“ Something ought to be done, it seems to 
me,” remarked David; for the family in ques¬ 
tion had been among the first dozen seeking new 
homes on the Ohio; and between them and his 
own little brood there had always existed more 
or less friendship. 



22 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Who’ll go with me ter look ’em up? ” de¬ 
manded old Reuben, hoarsely. 

Every man present signified his readiness to 
be of the rescue party; but Captain Brady, of 
course, would not hear of such a thing. 

“ It would weaken our defence! ” he de¬ 
clared. u We must hold this stockade above all 
things. Take four men if you wish, Reuben, 
but no more. And be careful lest you run into 
an ambush. These savages are treacherous at 
the best. They would strike you in the back if 
the chance arose. And if so he you have to 
shoot, make every bullet tell! ” 

Sandy pushed forward. He really hoped that 
the old ranger would pick him out as one of 
those who were to make up the rescue party. 
Always reckless, and fairly revelling in excite¬ 
ment, Sandy would have gladly hailed a chance 
to undertake this perilous adventure. 

“ Wait! ” called out David Armstrong just 
then. “ Perhaps, after all, it may not be neces¬ 
sary to go. Look yonder, Captain Brady, and 
you will see that the Indians are even now com¬ 
ing out of the woods! ” 

These words created a new spasm of excite¬ 
ment. Turning their eyes in the direction 
David had pointed, the gathered settlers saw 



SEEKING REFUGE AT THE BLOCKHOUSE 23 


that he indeed spoke the truth; for several 
painted figures had just then issued forth from 
the shelter of the fringe of forest, and started 
toward the stockade! 





CHAPTER III 

THE BEE THEE 

Some of the more impetuous among the set¬ 
tlers began immediately to d T aw back the ham¬ 
mers of their muskets; and one man even threw 
his gun to his shoulder, as if eager to be the first 
to fire at the Indians. 

But David Armstrong immediately pushed 
against him, so that his purpose was frustrated. 

“ What would you do, hothead? ” demanded 
Mr. Armstrong. “ They are so far away that 
your ammunition would only be wasted. Look 
again, and you will see that there are only four 
in all. Besides, they have their hands raised in 
the air, with the palms extended toward us. 
That means they would talk. It is the same as 
if they carried a white flag in token of amity. 
Let no one fire a shot. ’ ’ 

“ But at the same time be on your guard 
against the treacherous hounds, men! ” called 
out Captain Brady, himself the most inveterate 
hater of Indians in the entire colony, and never 
willing to trust one who carried a copper- 
colored skin. 


24 


THE BEE TREE 


25 


Slowly the four red men advanced, continuing 
to hold up their hands. Evidently they won¬ 
dered at seeing so great a number of armed 
whites clustered before the stockade. And the 
clanging of the bell must have bewildered them, 
since possibly it was the very first time such a 
sound had ever been heard by any of the quar¬ 
tette. 

“We should not allow them to come too 
near,” one man suggested, cautiously. 

“ True,” called out Brady. “ And an equal 
number of our men should advance to meet 
them. Armstrong, do you and Reuben, together 
with Brewster and Lane, step out. We will 
cover you with our guns. They have laid their 
bows and tomahawks down on the ground; but 
look out for treachery. Should you hear me 
shout, drop down on your faces, for we will 
sweep them out of existence with one volley! ’’ 

The two boys watched the little squad meet 
the four Indians, and enter into a powwow with 
them. Much of the conversation had to be car¬ 
ried on through gesture, since only old Reuben 
could understand the Indian tongue. But it was 
evident that the newcomers meant to be 
friendly, and were not the advance couriers of 
a band bent on burning the post. 



26 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Presently David beckoned to Captain Brady, 
and, as the other approached, he observed: 

“ They do not mean ns any harm. On the 
contrary this young chief, who says his name is 
Black Beaver, wishes to trade some skins he 
has for tobacco. They have been south in Ken¬ 
tucky attending a grand council, and are on the 
way home to their village. He also wished to 
secure a small amount of meal if we can spare 
it. And, Captain, since we wish peace with all 
the tribes, I have promised to obtain these 
things for him. ’ ’ 

When they heard this the men set up a shout, 
such was the great relief they experienced after 
the recent scare. Still, the cautious Brady 
warned them against being too positive. 

“ How do we know whether they are deceiv¬ 
ing us? ” he said, coldly; for he could not bear 
to be friendly with any Indian. “ Perhaps they 
are even now carrying the scalps of our neigh¬ 
bors, the Bancrofts? ” 

6 ‘ Not so, Captain, you wrong them,” said 
David, hastily; “ for yonder come those you 
mention, and apparently none the worse for 
their delay in starting.” 

After that there was no reasonable excuse for 
prolonging the matter; and so by degrees the 



THE BEE TREE 


27 


settlers made their way back to their various 
homes. The Indians were treated well, and sent 
on their way with a supply of tobacco and a 
measure of meal, which latter David Armstrong 
himself supplied. 

But little work was done the balance of that 
day. The result of the fright occasioned by 
this, the very first ringing of the alarm bell, 
made every one more or less nervous. Mrs. 
Armstrong would not even hear of the two boys 
starting out to hunt in the afternoon, as they 
had planned. 

“ We’d better put it off till to-morrow, 
Sandy,” remarked Bob, when he saw how the 
recent excitement had affected his mother’s 
nerves. 

“ I suppose so,” replied the younger lad, 
with regret in his voice. “ But I had just set 
my heart on trying to find that bee tree. We 
saw the little fellows working in Kate’s flower 
garden, and flying off with their honey. Just 
think what a fine thing it would be, Bob, if we 
could learn where their storehouse is, and cut 
down the tree! Wouldn’t mother’s eyes just 
dance to see the piles of combs full of sweetness, 
perhaps enough for the whole winter? ” 

“ That’s a fact,” admitted Bob, his own eyes 



28 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


shining with eagerness as Sandy thus painted 
such a pleasant picture. “ But it will keep, I 
guess, till to-morrow. We ought to get done 
with our task early in the day, and then for the 
woods. You know there is not a great stock of 
meat handy, except that jerked venison that 
neither of us like very well. I’d enjoy some¬ 
thing like a saddle of fresh venison myself. ’ ? 

And so the more impulsive brother found 
himself compelled to bow to circumstances, al¬ 
ways a difficult task with Sandy. 

During the afternoon the young pioneers 
busied themselves in various ways, for there 
were always plenty of things to be done-— 
water to be carried from the spring, wood for 
the fire to be cut and hauled close to the door, 
some of the first pelts which the boys had taken 
in their rusty traps to be attended to in the 
curing; the garden to be weeded; and so it 
went on until the descending sun gave warning 
that another night was close at hand. 

Sandy had taken an hour off to go fishing in 
the near-by river. As usual he brought back 
enough of the finny prizes to afford the Arm¬ 
strong family a bountiful meal that night. 
From woods and waters they were accustomed 
to take daily toll, as their needs arose; nor was 



THE BEE TREE 


29 


there likely to be any scarcity of food so long 
as hostile Indians gave the new settlement a 
wide berth. 

Bob came upon his brother as he was return¬ 
ing to the cabin with a bucket of water. Sandy 
was almost through cleaning his fish, and the 
older boy naturally stopped a minute to com¬ 
ment on their fine size. 

“ I was just thinking, Bob,” remarked the 
worker, with a shake of his head, “ that perhaps 
we might see those same Indians again some 
fine day.” 

“ What makes you say that? ” asked the 
older lad, quickly; for he knew that Sandy 
must have something on his mind to speak in 
this strain. 

4 4 I think I feel a little like Captain Brady 
does about Indians,” Sandy replied, “ and that 
they are treacherous. Somehow, I just can’t 
trust them, and that’s the truth of it.” 

“ Oh! but how about Blue Jacket? Didn’t 
he prove that he was a true friend to us? ” de¬ 
manded Bob. 

The young Indian to whom he referred was 
a Shawanee brave who had been wounded in the 
fight the settlers had had just before arriving 
at the river. The boys had found him desper- 



30 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ately hurt, and had cared for him, even saving 
his life when the irate Captain Brady wanted 
to have the “ varment ” killed as he would a 
snake. 

In return Blue Jacket had assisted in the res¬ 
cue of the Armstrong boys who had fallen into 
the hands of the Indians. 

“ That’s true, Bob,” responded Sandy, read¬ 
ily enough. “ Blue Jacket is our friend, but 
he’s the only wearer of a red skin that I would 
trust. Now, of course, you’re wondering what 
ails me. I’ll tell you. I didn’t like the way that 
young Delaware chief looked at our pretty little 
sister, Kate! ” 

“ What’s that you are saying? ” demanded 
Bob, frowning. 

“ I saw him, if you didn’t,” continued Sandy, 
stubbornly. “ He kept looking at her every 
little while even as he talked; for, you know, 
some of the women and girls came out of the 
stockade to look at the Indians. I tell you 
plainly that my finger just itched to touch the 
trigger of my gun when I saw him staring at 
Kate like that.” 

‘ ‘ But — he walked over here with us to get 
the measure of meal father promised to give 
him, without accepting any pay ? ’ ’ Bob went on, 



THE BEE TREE 


31 


as if hardly able to credit the grave thing his 
brother was hinting at. 

“ Yes, and I kept just behind him all the 
time,” Sandy went on, “ with my gun in my 
hands. I think he noticed me after a while, for 
he stopped looking. But I wouldn’t trust that 
heathen further than I could see him.” 

“ Well, they have gone away,” said Bob, as 
though that settled it. 

“ How do you know that? ” questioned 
Sandy. 

“ Secretly, acting under orders from Cap¬ 
tain Brady, old Reuben followed them for three 
miles, keeping himself hidden all the while. He 
reported that they had surely kept straight on, 
secured a canoe just where they said they had 
hidden one, and paddled across the river, land¬ 
ing on the other shore, and disappearing in the 
forest.” 

” But Black Beaver plans to come back some 
day,” Sandy continued, as he arose; “ I could 
see it in his eyes. And I mean to warn mother, 
so that she can keep Kate from wandering away 
from home so much. If ever I see that Dela¬ 
ware chief sneaking around here it will be a 
bad day for him.” 

“ We called them Delawares, but old Reuben 




32 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


says now he made a mistake, and that they be¬ 
long to the Iroquois. He told me that Black 
Beaver was a chief among the Senecas, and that 
his home was far away toward the Great 
Lakes. ’’ 

“ That may be so,” remarked the uncon¬ 
vinced Sandy, starting toward the cabin, for 
evening was not far away, and he already in¬ 
wardly felt clamorous demands for the appe¬ 
tizing supper that would soon be on the fire. 
“ But even if he lives hundreds of miles away 
he can come back, can’t he! He has made the 
journey once, why not again? ” 

Bob knew that, when once his brother got an 
idea into his head, argument was next to use¬ 
less ; so he wisely let the matter drop. He him¬ 
self was not altogether convinced that they had 
seen the last of the proud young chief, though 
he hardly anticipated that it would be Kate’s 
pretty face that might draw Black Beaver south 
again. 

Many of the settlers passed an uneasy night; 
but there was no alarm. Talking the matter 
over among themselves, some of the men had 
arrived at the conviction that these representa¬ 
tives of the Iroquois may have been attending 
one of those great meetings which were being 



THE BEE TREE 


33 


engineered by the Pottawottomi sachem, Pon¬ 
tiac, looking toward a combination of most of 
the various tribes, by means of which the 
French in the far North would be assisted, and 
the English settlements through Ohio, Ken¬ 
tucky, and along the Great Lakes be wiped 
out. 

If this were indeed the truth, then Black 
Beaver had professed a friendship that he 
really did not feel, since he must have been 
forming some league with the warlike and mer¬ 
ciless Shawanees, under such leaders as the 
detested renegade, Simon Girty, of whose cruel 
deeds history has told. 

When the morning finally arrived without 
any sign of trouble, even gentle Mary Arm¬ 
strong seemed to have recovered from her nerv¬ 
ousness. She assented to the wish of the boys 
to go forth, and see what they could do in the 
way of securing fresh food. Before leaving, 
Sandy cautioned his mother about Kate, for he 
could not forget the covetous looks which the 
painted young chief had cast toward his pretty 
little sister, child though she was, being not 
more than twelve years of age. 

“ Be sure and fetch an ax along, Sandy,” 
said Bob, just as they were ready to start forth, 



34 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


with guns fastened over their shoulders by 
means of straps. “ But, if you can help it, 
don’t let mother see you. She would think it 
strange that we carried such a thing on a little 
hunt for a deer.” 

4 4 But what if we succeed in locating the bee 
tree, and cut it down; how are we to carry the 
honey home! ” asked Sandy. 

“ Time enough for that when we have won 
out,” replied Bob, with a laugh. “ Besides, I 
don’t think we’ll be more than a quarter, or at 
most a third of a mile away from home, unless 
the little insects are hunting at a longer dis¬ 
tance than they generally do, as Pat O’Mara 
told me.” 

“ Have you got the sugar and everything 
along? ” questioned Sandy. 

“ Of course. I’d be a pretty chap to go off 
unprepared, wouldn’t I? Now, watch your 
chance, and sneak the ax off. 'We’ll surely 
need it to chop the tree down, — if we find it,” 
Bob concluded. 

But his sanguine brother never doubted in 
the least that success was bound to attend their 
efforts. He went into everything he did with 
the same enthusiasm and confidence. 

Ten minutes later the boys were in an open 



THE BEE TREE 


35 


glade not a great distance away from the Arm¬ 
strong cabin. Here flowers grew in profusion, 
even at this late day in the season; and Kate 
was in the habit of coming out to pick great 
bunches of the pretty posies, for she loved to 
see them around the humble cabin, brightening 
things with their color, and sweetening the at¬ 
mosphere with their perfume. 

Even in those days the methods of bee hunters 
did not differ very much from those which are 
in vogue in the woods to-day. The Irish trapper 
had posted the Armstrong boys as to the way 
in which a bee tree could be discovered, once 
busy little workers were found loading up with 
honey in the flowers or blossoms. 

First of all the boys hunted until they discov¬ 
ered where some of the wild bees were busily 
engaged. Honey was not so plentiful at this 
particular season of the year; and, when Bob 
made a little sirup out of some yellow sugar he 
had been wise enough to fetch along, a bee was 
quickly attracted to the feast. 

When he had loaded himself down with the 
spoils, and was preparing to fly away, Bob 
dextrously caught the little fellow. Taking care 
not to be stung he succeeded in attaching a long 
white thread to the bee's body, in such a way 



36 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


that it would not interfere with his flying, yet 
could be seen for quite a distance. 

Then the captive was released. As is uni¬ 
versally the case, the bee arose in the air, 
and made a straight fly for the hive! 
That is where the phrase “ a bee-line ” origi¬ 
nated. 

“ Watch him now, Sandy! ” called Bob, as 
he liberated the prisoner. 

“ All right,” answered his brother, eagerly. 
“ I can see him still; and how he does spin 
along. There, he has disappeared now, right 
beyond that big poplar yonder. Do we go there 
next time, Bob? ” 

“ Yes,” came the reply; “ that gives us a 
start, and will bring us just so much nearer 
the hive. Then we must catch another bee, and 
repeat the job. And, as we may not And as 
many of them, once we enter the woods, we will 
put several in this little bottle I’ve brought 
along with me.” 

This was easily accomplished; after which 
they walked over to where they had obtained 
the very last glimpse of the laden worker. 

“ We’ve got the line now,” remarked Bob; 
“ and can even go further into the woods, keep¬ 
ing on a straight road. But, for fear that we 



1 


THE BEE TREE 


37 


may overshoot the mark, suppose we make an¬ 
other trial right here.” 

“ Just as you say, Bob,” returned Sandy. 

You got Pat to tell you lots of things he 
wouldn't repeat for me. I wonder could it be 
that leaning tree through there. Seems to me 
that might be a fine old hive, for it looks hollow 
enough . 9 9 

“ But you remember Pat said they don't 
often select a dead tree. It might blow down, 
and spoil their stock of honey,” his brother 
went on to say. 

“ But they do find a hollow, don't they? ” 
Sandy inquired. 

“ Yes; usually the top of a tree that has a 
hole in it, or a big limb. They are wise enough 
to know that the rain must be kept out, and also 
that certain wild animals are mighty fond of 
honey. Now, here goes, Sandy. Watch close 
— there! ” 

Again Bob cast the gorged prisoner free, and 
the little insect, after several vain efforts, man¬ 
aged to mount upward on sagging wings and 
make off. 

This time as before they marked the last ap¬ 
pearance of the laden honey bee, and then a 
third trial was made. When a fourth and a 



38 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


fifth drew them still deeper into the forest Sandy 
began to grow much excited. He kept looking 
all around him while his brother carried out the 
important operation of coaxing the bee to ac¬ 
cept a cargo of sugar sirup in the place of the 
scarce nectar in the flowers. 

All at once Bob looked up. 

i ‘ Hark! ’ ’ he exclaimed. 

Sandy at once made a move as though about 
to sling his gun around from his back. Then he 
saw the smile on his brother’s face; and, sus¬ 
pecting the truth, cocked his own head in a 
listening attitude. 

44 I hear it! ” he exclaimed, his whole face 
lighting up. “ Nothing but the hum of a hive 
of bees could make that noise, Bob, could it! ” 

“ Look up into that sycamore tree and tell 
me if you can’t see them flying around! Those 
must be the young ones trying their wings. Pat 
said they came out every fine day, and buzzed 
about. He told me he had found more than one 
bee tree just by tracing the sound. Once heard 
in the quiet forest it can never be forgotten.” 

“ Hurrah! then we’ve traced the little ras¬ 
cals to their house! ” cried Sandy, as he threw 
his gun aside, and, clutching the ax, stepped 
forward to strike the first blow toward cutting 



THE BEE TREE 


39 


down the big tree in which the bees had their 
hive. 

Bob did not try to discourage him, for he 
knew that when some of this enthusiasm had 
died away his turn at the chopping would 
arrive. 

And sure enough it did; for Sandy gave out 
before a quarter of the task had been com¬ 
pleted, though later on he would recover his 
breath and show a willingness to go at it again. 

Both lads knew just how to chop a tree so as 
to lay it where they wished, and, having chosen 
the best place to throw the big sycamore, they 
kept hacking away with steady strokes, making 
the chips fairly fly in showers. 



CHAPTER IV 


WATCHING FOR THE HONEY THIEF 

“ Whoop! there she goes over with a 
crash! ” shouted Sandy, throwing his cap up 
into the air, as the tall sycamore came down 
just as they had planned. 

He started to dash forward as soon as the 
tree had struck, eager to ascertain what sort 
of prize they had drawn in the lottery; but his 
more careful brother laid hands on him. 

“ Don’t try it! ” he exclaimed. “ Why, they 
are so wild just now, they’d sting you to 
death! ” 

“ But how are we going to get at the honey, 
Bob? ” demanded the younger lad. 

“ You run to the house, and tell the others 
the good news. I’ll be making veils out of this 
thin cloth. Then we have the gloves we used 
last winter. Bring a lot of pails back with you; 
for I think we’ll need all you can find.” 

Sandy hastened back to the cabin, where he 

electrified his father and mother and little Kate 

with the joyful news. They got together every 

40 



“ ‘ whoop! there she goes! f ” 





WATCHING FOR THE HONEY THIEF 41 


available vessel for carrying the expected 
spoils; and then Sandy led the way back to 
where his brother awaited them. 

On the trail he was compelled to explain just 
how they had taken Pat 0’Mara’s advice with 
regard to tracing the honey gatherers; and 
what splendid success had resulted. Kate was 
singing with delight over the anticipated store 
of sweets that would reward their skill in lo¬ 
cating the bee tree, for, in those early pioneer 
days, as a rule the only sugar the settlers had 
was obtained through boiling down the sap of 
the sugar maple tree in the early spring; or in 
discovering some secret store of honey in the 
forest. 

Bob had arranged things completely to his 
satisfaction while his brother was away. Both 
of the young pioneers donned the veils and 
gloves, so that the bees might not take a ter¬ 
rible revenge on the destroyers of their home. 

Bob had also made a smudge with which he 
expected to partly stupefy the angry little crea¬ 
tures. Smoke always frightens bees, for they 
seem to think that fire is about to devastate 
their hive. Nature influences them to immedi¬ 
ately load up with all the honey they can pos¬ 
sibly carry, with the idea of taking it to some 



42 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


new retreat; and while in this condition they 
are comparatively harmless. 

Presently Sandy came back to the spot where 
the others were standing in safety. He had a 
bucket almost full of broken combs from which 
the richness was oozing in a manner that set 
little Kate wild with delight. As for the good 
mother the sight was undoubtedly a pleasant 
one for her, since it promised many a delightful 
treat in the long winter months ahead. 

David Armstrong immediately started home 
with the bucket, so as to empty it, and once more 
put it into service. Bob was still working there 
in the midst of the ruined hive. 

“ And he says there are, oh! ever so many 
more buckets of better honey than this! ’ ’ Sandy 
had cried, as he brought out a second supply, 
in which the combs were less broken than before, 
and seemed newer. 

“ The whole air is filled with the perfume 
of honey/’ remarked Mary Armstrong. “ It 
hardly seems right to rob the poor little workers 
in this way, after they have stored it up so care¬ 
fully; though we do need it badly, for there 
will be little sugar in our home except what we 
make next spring.” 

“Oh! Bob says there’ll be just oceans of it 



WATCHING FOR THE HONEY THIEF 43 


left, spilled on the ground,’’ Sandy went on, 
“ and the bees will get it all, sooner or later. 
Plenty of time for ’em to seal it up for this 
winter. They always have ten times too much, 
and that’s why some of it is so old and dark 
looking. Bob says he is not taking that if he 
can help it.” 

“ Why, I could smell the honey half way to 
the house,” remarked Mr. Armstrong, as he 
came up just then. “ And, if there happens to 
be a bear within half a mile of this place, you 
can depend on it that he’ll be prowling around 
here this very night.” 

“ That was just what Bob was saying, 
father! ” declared Sandy. “ He showed me 
marks on the smooth trunk of the sycamore, 
where a bear must have climbed up ever so 
often, as if trying to reach in at the honey that 
was just too far away for him to steal. And 
some of the scratches were so fresh Bob says 
they must have been made only last night. ’ ’ 

After numerous trips to the cabin to empty 
the buckets the pleasant task was finally com¬ 
pleted. Bob declared that he had secured about 
all of the honey that was worth carrying away. 
There still remained a great store of the sticky 
stuff; but it was either spilled on the ground, 



44 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


or else so darkened by age that it did not seem 
worth while carrying it off. 

“ We’ll leave it to the poor little fellows,” 
laughed Bob; “ for they’re as busy as beavers 
right now loading up and flying off to another 
hollow tree one of ’em has found. And I think 
we ’re pretty lucky to get off as easy as we did, 
eh, Sandy? ” 

Sandy had removed the thin cloth veil that 
covered his face, and by this action revealed the 
fact that at least one angry bee had found a way 
to pierce his armor; for his left cheek was 
swollen so that his eye seemed unusually small. 
Some wet clay took the pain out, however, and 
in due course of time the swelling would go 
down. 

It was not the first time Sandy had felt a 
sting from a bee, nor did he expect it would be 
the last. And, when he looked at the glorious 
fruits of their raid on that big sycamore hive, 
he forgot that he had suffered in the good 
cause. 

“ Well, do we try for that bear to-night, 
Bob? ” he asked of his brother, later on in the 
afternoon, when he could see once more fairly 
well with both eyes. 

“ I think we would be silly not to,” replied 



WATCHING FOR THE HONEY THIEF 45 


his brother; “ especially since we set the trap 
ourselves when we cut down that bee tree.” 

“ He’s just sure to come nosing around, don’t 
you think? ” 

“ Don’t see how any bear could stand back, 
with all that odor in the air. Besides, it looked 
to me as if the old fellow might have been pay¬ 
ing a visit to that tree every single night for a 
whole month, there were so many scratches on 
the bark. So you can just depend on it that he’s 
got his mouth set for honey.” 

“ And then there’s another thing in our 
favor,” Sandy went on saying, as he glanced 
upward toward the heavens, an action that 
caused his brother to remark: 

“ I’d wager a shilling that you are thinking 
of the moon being nearly full to-night, which is 
a fact. That is in our favor, and, on the whole, 
I’d be inclined to believe that we may be tasting 
a bear steak by to-morrow.” 

“ One good thing leads to another with us, 
Bob. First a prize in the way of gallons and 
gallons of prime honey, and then, to finish, per¬ 
haps a fat bear in the bargain! But, remember, 
you said I was to have the first shot at the old 
honey thief, if he does make his appearance? ” 

6i All right,” answered Bob, good naturedly; 



46 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ and I’ll keep my word; but if I were you I 
would go slow about calling names. Please re¬ 
member that there are some others in the same 
boat. Only, in our case, we succeeded in getting 
the spoils; and there we have the better of old 
Bruin, who climbed that tree so very many 
times only to have his trouble for his pains.” 

Of course the lads took their parents into 
their plans, for it might be their absence would 
worry the little mother, who sometimes still 
thought of that wild ringing of the alarm bell, 
and all it might have meant. 

Shortly after they had had their supper, the 
two lads took their muskets, and passed out 
into the night. As they had said, it promised 
to be just a glorious opportunity to carry out 
such a plan as they had in mind. 

The moon rode high in the eastern heavens, 
being not very far from full. Not a cloud 
seemed to dim the bright light, so that, for a 
short distance around them, things looked al¬ 
most as plain as in the daytime. 

As the two boys had done considerable hunt¬ 
ing in common there was little necessity for 
talking things over, or arranging any pro¬ 
gramme. When the honey-loving bear came 
along, eager to satisfy his craving for sweets, 





WATCHING FOR THE HONEY THIEF 47 


of course Sandy would wait for a favorable 
chance to get in a fair shot. And, unless his 
aim were poor, or some accident occurred to 
otherwise mar the arrangements, that would 
wind matters up. 

Arriving at the fallen bee tree, the young 
pioneers quickly decided just where they should 
secrete themselves. In doing this they exer¬ 
cised their knowledge as woodrangers, for much 
depended on the direction of the wind. 

“ It seems to be blowing toward the home 
quarter,” remarked Bob, as they stood there, 
fixing certain facts in their minds. “ That 
favors us finely, because the chances are ten 
to one he will come from the other side of the 
opening made by our felling the big sycamore. 
So you see he won’t be able to smell us.” 

“ How will this place do, Bob? ” suggested 
the younger brother,'pointing to what in his 
mind made a splendid hiding-nook, from which 
they could peer forth, and see anything that 
took place just beyond. 

“ Could hardly be better; and so there is no 
use for us to look further,” Bob remarked. 
“ Pick out your stand, Sandy, where you will 
be able to shoot best. I’ll be satisfied to take 
what is left.” 



48 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


This was soon arranged, and, having once 
settled down to wait, they tried to keep as still 
as though made out of marble. Talking was 
forbidden, even in whispers; and a cough 
would very likely have ruined the whole affair, 
since the bear, if near-by at the time, must have 
been warned of his danger, and with a “ wuff ” 
would turn to rush away. 

An hour passed in this way. Fortunately 
the two lads were good waiters, and had proved 
this on many another occasion in the past. 

Sandy had allowed his thoughts to go out to 
other scenes, and was even thinking of that fine 
young frontiersman, Simon Kenton, whom he 
admired so much, when he felt his brother 
touch him softly on the shoulder. The contact 
thrilled him, since it was the signal agreed on 
to denote that the lumbering bear was coming! 



CHAPTER V 


A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 

“ Listen ! ” said Bob, his lips placed as close 
to the ear of his brother as he could possibly 
get them. 

il I hear him! He is over there, just where 
you said,” replied the younger hunter, the 
words being whispered so low that they could 
not have been detected six feet away. 

“ Get ready then — have your gun up, so he 
won’t see the movement. ’Sh! ” 

Bob said this because he knew that, with that 
bright moonlight flooding the opening, there 
must always be a chance that its rays would 
glint from the metal barrel of a moving musket. 
And even such a little thing as this might serve 
to startle a suspicious bear into making a sud¬ 
den retreat. 

The sounds now became more pronounced 
than before. Some heavy body was undoubt¬ 
edly pushing through the underbrush, and in 
such haste as to be utterly unmindful of what 
noise was produced. 


49 


50 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Of course nothing but a clumsy bear could be 
guilty of such an advance, caution being thrown 
to the four winds because of that tantalizing 
odor of honey in the heavy night air, — an odor 
which was making Bruin fairly wild with eager¬ 
ness to he at the anticipated feast. 

A panther would have crept slily forward, 
so that not even the rustle of a leaf might be¬ 
tray its presence, and even a buffalo would 
have advanced with a certain amount of cau¬ 
tion; but a bear depends on its sense of smell 
to give warning of danger, and seldom moves 
with any degree of care. 

Presently Sandy could hear him sniffling at a 
great rate as he pushed closer. The animal evi¬ 
dently could not understand why there should 
be such a pronounced odor of honey in the air. 
Many times had he come to this same spot in 
the hope of being able to bag some of the bees’ 
store; but always to meet disappointment. 
But now there must be a great change in the 
arrangement of things. 

Somewhere amid the foliage covering the 
bushes across the glade the big beast must have 
stopped, to look in surprise at the fallen bee 
tree. Perhaps he suspected a trap of some kind, 
knowing that his mortal enemy, man, had been 



A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 


51 


there lately. But that distracting smell 
drowned all his caution. Unable to hold out 
against it any longer, the bear suddenly lum¬ 
bered forward. 

Sandy saw him coming, but held his fire. In 
the first place the bear was head on, and he 
wanted to get a chance at the animal’s flank, so 
that he might make sure to plant his bullet back 
of the shoulder, where he could reach the heart, 
and so bring his game down with that one shot. 
Then again, it chanced that there was some¬ 
thing of a shadow, which served to partly hide 
the beast as he advanced. 

Straight into the midst of the broken honey¬ 
combs did Bruin hasten, grunting in evident 
delight as he commenced to lick up the spilled 
sweet fluid, so dear to the heart of every bear. 

Sandy managed to repress his excitement to 
a great extent. He had been hunting so often, 
boy though he was, that he no longer experi¬ 
enced the same intense thrill that would have 
almost overwhelmed him a couple of years ago, 
had he been thrown into such a position as this. 

Slowly his cheek dropped down until it rested 
against the butt of his faithful old musket. 
Well did he know that the priming was in the 
pan, and that, when the flint struck the steel 




52 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


sharply, the spark would communicate to the 
charge, with the result that the bear must be 
considerably astonished. 

Unfortunately, however, Sandy could not see 
in that deceptive moonlight that a fair-sized 
twig happened to be just between the muzzle of 
his gun and the object at which he aimed. Had 
it been daytime he would have detected this 
fact, and avoided taking the chances of his bul¬ 
let being slightly deflected in its swift passage. 

The report of the gun was deafening. With 
his usual impulsiveness Sandy instantly leaped 
to his feet, giving a boyish shout as he saw the 
bear kicking on the ground, in the midst of the 
branches of the fallen tree. 

Then, to his utter astonishment, and not a 
little to his chagrin as well, the dark, rolling 
object seemed to scramble once more to its four 
feet, and, attracted by his movements, immedi¬ 
ately started to advance directly toward him, 
growling in the fiercest possible way. 

It could no longer be said that Bruin was 
making a clumsy and slow advance, for, in¬ 
spired by a sudden rage toward the object from 
which his painful wound had evidently sprang, 
the animal was rushing furiously forward. 

Bob fired in the hope of checking this ad- 



A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 


53 


vance, that promised to upset all of their fine 
plans; but just then Sandy, in jumping back, 
chanced to jostle his brother, so that, even if the 
second bullet struck the bear at all, it certainly 
did no great damage. At least his swift if lum¬ 
bering advance was not materially checked. 

“ Run, Sandy! 11 shouted Bob, as he realized 
that they were now facing an infuriated and 
wounded beast, with only their hatchets and 
knives to use in defence of their lives. 

Sandy was not slow to take the advice thus 
given. He sprang away in one direction, while 
Bob took the other. Just why the bear should 
have picked out Sandy to follow, neither of the 
brothers could ever say, though they really be¬ 
lieved the old fellow was keen enough to under¬ 
stand which of the fleeing lads had sent that 
first stinging pellet that bored under his skin, 
and made him so uncomfortable. 

Bob was dismayed when he found that the 
animal had ignored him, and was chasing 
Sandy. With his usual generous way of taking 
burdens on his shoulders, Bob had really hoped 
to attract the bear; indeed, with this idea in 
view, he had even made more noise than was 
necessary, as he floundered along through the 
bushes. 



54 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


When, however, he found that he had not 
been followed, he immediately changed his tac¬ 
tics. From running away he now started to 
follow after the bear, and, as he thus pushed 
through the woods, the boy tried to reload his 
musket, always a difficult task in those days of 
the primitive powder-horn, when the charge 
had to be measured out into the palm, poured 
into the long barrel, and the bullet in its patch 
of greased cloth pushed down with the ram¬ 
rod; after which the priming had to be ad¬ 
justed. 

Bob was not making any particularly good 
headway in reloading, since he could not stay 
his hurrying steps long enough to do the right 
thing. 

From the noise ahead he judged that Sandy 
must have succeeded in drawing himself up into 
the friendly branches of a tree, and that the 
furious bear was following close on his heels. 

At least this would give the fugitive a little 
time, and perhaps, meanwhile, he, Bob, could 
come on the scene with his gun, ready to take 
a hand in the game. 

“Hi! Bob, this way! ” Sandy was shouting, 
at the top of his voice, as though his situation 
was rapidly becoming desperate. 



A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 


55 


4 ‘ All right! ’ ’ answered the one who was 
pushing along through the brush as best he 
could. “Pm coming, Sandy! Hold on a little 
longer! ” 

A minute or so later he found himself on the 
scene. Just as he had guessed, Sandy, being 
hotly pursued, and fearing lest he be overtaken 
by the angry beast, had on the spur of the mo¬ 
ment clambered hastily into the branches of a 
tree. It was the result of sudden impulse, for 
surely the boy knew that an American black 
hear is always at home wherever he can dig his 
sharp claws into the bark of a tree. 

Perhaps Sandy would never fully realize 
how he came to escape the animaPs last rush; 
but it must have been almost by a miracle. 
Once among the branches, the boy did not stop 
an instant. The hear immediately showed an 
inclination to follow him aloft, and Sandy 
hardly cared to try conclusions with Bruin in 
his present winded condition, and with only his 
hatchet to depend on. 

So he had hastily climbed upward. Looking 
down, he had been dismayed to see that the bear 
was making quick progress after him. He could 
hardly go to the top of the tree, and, as a possi¬ 
bility leaped into his mind, the boy started out 



56 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


on a large limb that was some twenty feet or 
so above the ground. 

Bruin did not hesitate a moment when he 
reached this limb, but started out after the 
young hunter. It was at that moment Sandy 
had sent out his appeal for help. He realized 
that he was in a bad fix, since the bear would 
either follow until he could reach his intended 
victim with his sharp claws; or else the com¬ 
bined weight of the two must break the limb, 
sending both to the ground. 

Bob, having arrived under the tree, was 
making desperate efforts to finish loading his 
gun, so that he might bring the little drama to 
a close. But the bear all the while kept on 
creeping out closer and closer, balancing his 
bulk with wonderful skill upon the limb. 

Sandy was impulsive in his ways; at the 
same time that bright mind of his was apt to 
originate many a clever ruse on the spur of the 
moment, and when desperation pushed. 

Bob, keeping one eye anxiously turned up¬ 
ward while he pushed the bullet hastily into the 
chamber of his gun, saw his brother suddenly 
back still further away, so that the limb began 
to bend downward with his weight. The bear 
halted, as if loath to make any further forward 




y h* <-v Wm. 


u THE BEAR ALL THE WHILE KEPT ON CREEPING OUT 

CLOSER AND CLOSER ” 












* 





H 




A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 


57 


move, and watching to see what his human 
adversary might be contemplating. 

Suddenly Sandy let go his hold of the outer 
branches. He had seen that he might break 
his fall by passing through the foliage just 
below, and was willing to accept the chances of 
receiving sundry scratches in consequence. 

Bob fairly held his breath as he saw this bold 
action on the part of his brother. The bear 
crouched closer to the limb above, as though 
declining to be shaken from his hold. But, 
when the danger of this had passed, the beast 
started to back to the trunk of the tree, intent 
on reaching the ground again as speedily as 
» possible. 

Sandy had come through the lower foliage 
with a great scramble, very much after the 
manner of a floundering wildcat that had been 
shot while perched in a tree. 

Bob waited only long enough to assure him¬ 
self that his brother had reached the ground, 
even in a sadly dishevelled condition. Then he 
began to add the necessary priming to his gun, 
for Bruin was already starting to descend to 
renew hostilities. 

Taking several steps forward, Bob arrived at 
the base of the big beech with its wide-spread- 



58 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ing branches. It was evidently his intention 
to wait for the coming of the bear, and give him 
a warm reception. 

Bruin, in his ignorance of such things as ex¬ 
plosives, since his only adventures up to now 
had probably been with the arrows of the red 
men, gave little heed to this suggestive action 
on the part of the young hunter. He kept back¬ 
ing down with all possible haste, anxious to 
avenge his injuries upon these human foes. 

But, after all, Bob found himself mistaken 
when he supposed that it was up to him to end 
the big beast. While the bear was still at least 
ten feet above him, the musket was suddenly 
taken forcibly from his hands. 

“ You promised me, Bob, please remem¬ 
ber! 99 cried Sandy. 

With his face bleeding from the scratches he 
had received in his fall, Sandy must certainly 
have presented a strange appearance just then; 
but the spirit of the hunter rose superior to any 
and all discomforts. That bear was his by 
rights, and he did not mean to be cheated out 
of his triumph. 

Down came Bruin, looking over his shoulder 
as he dropped, and probably measuring the 
capacity of these two foes. But he failed to 



A STRANGE BEAR HUNT 


59 


figure on the terrible power that lay in the odd 
looking stick one of them pointed up at him. 

There was a sudden flash, a stunning report, 
for Bob in his nervousness had overcharged his 
gun, and while Sandy fell back with a bruised 
shoulder, the bear dropped like a stone at the 
foot of the tree. Sandy had clapped the muz¬ 
zle of the musket close to the animal’s ear when 
pulling the trigger, so that the result was never 
in doubt. 

“ Whew! ” he exclaimed, as he scrambled 
to his feet, still clutching Bob’s gun. “ Did 
you empty your powder-horn in that charge, 
Bob? I’ll be black and blue for a month after 
that recoil. But I got him, didn’t I? He’ll 
never have a chance to chase a fellow up a tree 
again. And, Bob, we’re going to have that bear 
steak all right to-morrow, I reckon.” 

Which they did, sure enough, though, as 
Bruin was no youngster, it probably required 
pretty sharp teeth to enjoy the meal. 



CHAPTER VI 


SERIOUS NEWS 

It was just three days after the strange bear 
hunt that the boys, on returning from a little 
trip to see what their traps might contain thus 
early in the season, found that the home circle 
had been widened by the coming of the Irish 
trapper, Pat O’Mara. 

He was a jovial fellow, with a fiery red beard, 
and hair of the same hue falling far below his 
coonskin cap. His blue eyes generally twinkled 
with humor; but, for all that, he had long since 
proved himself a fit companion for such woods¬ 
men as Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton, James 
Harrod, Jo Daviess and John Hardin, foremost 
in the list of pioneers who had carved their 
names on the pages of history by their brave 
deeds along the disputed border countries. 

Pat was delighted to see the two Armstrong 
boys again, for they had been favorites of his 
ever since the days when, acting on his advice, 
David had decided to leave Virginia and cast 
his fortunes with the bold settlers along the 

60 


SERIOUS NEWS 


61 


upper Ohio. But wise Bob soon saw that, un¬ 
der all his fun, there was a seriousness about 
Pat that he could not remember noting be¬ 
fore. 

The trapper examined what few pelts the 
boys had taken up to now, and gave more or 
less advice about curing them to the best ad¬ 
vantage. 

“ As the sa’son grows older the fur wull be 
thicker,” he observed, smoothing the soft pelt 
of a red fox that had been recently taken. 
“ And, av ye obsarve what I’m tillin’ ye, ’tis a 
better price ye’ll recave for the same from the 
trader, unless by the same token it happens till 
be a Frinchman ye be d’alin’ wid. They do be 
wantin’ to gobble the hull airth, I do be 
thinkin r .” 

This was always a subject upon which Pat 
felt deeply, for he was known to have a bitter 
prejudice against the French trappers and 
traders generally. At this time the French 
were in complete mastery of the valuable fur 
regions around the Great Lakes, and, being 
also located far in the south, at the mouth of 
the Mississippi at New Orleans, it was the an¬ 
nounced intention of the companies controlling 
these half-breed trappers to form a chain of 



62 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


trading posts from Canada to the distant Mexi¬ 
can gulf. 

Daniel Boone knew all about this tremendous 
scheme, and it was partly with the idea of block¬ 
ing it that he had pushed out so far into the 
western wilderness, and influenced others to 
follow his example. 

Dangers without number they must face in 
so doing; but, surely, if the wonderful wide- 
reaching valley of the Mississippi might be 
saved for English-speaking people, their efforts 
would be worth while. 

While Bob watched the face of the Irish 
trapper, he came to the conclusion that Pat 
must have brought some unpleasant news along 
with him. This turned out to be the exact 
truth. As the two boys had now reached an 
age when they were to be depended on as de¬ 
fenders of the home, David Armstrong only 
waited until Kate happened to be sent on an er¬ 
rand to a neighbor, when he had Pat recount 
the matter for the benefit of Bob and Sandy. 

There was much talk of a big Indian uprising 
all through the country between the Ohio and 
the lakes. Pontiac was again endeavoring to 
form a coalition of the many tribes, from the 
Six Nations, or Iroquois, in New York and 




SERIOUS NEWS 


63 


Ohio, to the Pottawottomies and Sacs in the 
west, and the Creeks and Shawanees in the 
south. 

Already, in many places, the red men were 
said to be on the warpath, and a trail of burn¬ 
ing cabins marked their passage. 

Pat had heard of these things, and, thinking 
of the good friends who had settled on the Ohio 
only the preceding spring, he had lost little 
time in making his way back again to the settle¬ 
ment that was flourishing so finely. 

“ It wull not be apt till come till ye, right 
away,” he said in conclusion; “ but ’tis just as 
well that ivery sowl be made aware av the dan¬ 
ger. Niver belave thot ye are safe from attack 
here. It do be a foine place to defind, located 
on a hill as ye are; but remimber that the rids 
are backed up by more or less av thim treacher¬ 
ous Frinch trappers and traders; and that they 
are sworn to wipe' out ivery English post wist 
av the mountains.” 

The news quickly spread until it was known 
in every home. Men got together and talked it 
over, trying to so arrange their plans that, in 
the event of an attack, the defence of the block¬ 
house would be conducted in the best possible 


manner. 



64 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Scouts were sent out whose business it was 
to scour the forest many miles around, on both 
sides of the river. And, should one of these 
discover that they were threatened with an in¬ 
road of the Indians, it must be his duty to 
hasten to send up a signal of warning. 

This was to be in the shape of certain columns 
of black smoke, which, seen by the next scout, 
would be repeated, until in this manner the 
startling news might be received at the settle¬ 
ment hours in advance of the coming of the 
fleetest messenger. 

It was employing the tactics of the Indians to 
a good purpose. 

These precautions having been taken, the 
settlers went about their daily duties, con¬ 
fident that they would receive ample warning 
should danger arise, and also that they would 
be able to give a good account of themselves in 
battle, did the reds venture to attack the post. 

But it was the policy of every man, woman 
and child, from that time forth, to keep an un¬ 
easy eye on the sky line, especially toward the 
east and west. Men, as they worked in their 
maize fields, would pause every little while to 
sweep the horizon with anxious gaze; and, 
should one of them at any time happen to dis- 



SERIOUS NEWS 


65 


cover any sign of smoke rising, it was apt to be 
an anxious moment for him until he had as¬ 
sured himself that the column was a single one, 
and not triple. 

Even such a hovering cloud as this could not 
keep the two venturesome Armstrong boys 
from going forth every day. Sometimes they 
had business along their trap line, for work 
grew pretty brisk as the season advanced. 
Then again it might be a hunt that engaged 
their attention. Whenever they had any extra 
meat on hand it was their provident habit to 
dry the same for use in the hard winter months 
ahead. 

As yet the settlers knew not what awaited 
them, once the snows of winter closed in, for 
they had never spent such a season on the Ohio. 
Tales of bitter weather had come to them; but 
they were hardy souls, and believed that, if the 
Indians could come through such a yearly ex¬ 
perience unscathed, they ought to be able to do 
the same. 

Nevertheless, every good housewife started 
early to lay in all such extra stores as could be 
procured. The stock of simple herbs, drying 
in bunches from the beams overhead in the 
living room of the Armstrong cabin, testified 



66 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

to the fact that the careful mother was pre¬ 
pared for any ordinary sickness that might 
arise. And there, too, could be seen various 
packages of the tough jerked venison, which 
would sustain life, when gnawed, as the Indians 
were accustomed to doing when on the trail, 
though the more civilized settlers preferred to 
use it in soups or stews. 

For two days Bob and Sandy had not been 
out in the forest save to look after their traps. 
True, only the preceding day, a fine fat wild 
turkey had fallen before the gun of Sandy, and 
been greatly enjoyed; but both lads felt an 
eagerness to once again go forth on a genuine 
hunt for larger game. 

The tender-hearted and fearful little mother 
could not forbid them venturing forth, even 
though she sighed after they had gone, and 
wiped a furtive tear from her eye. Food was 
a necessity, and they had no other means for 
procuring it than in this manner. According 
to their belief, Providence had stocked these 
woods with game in order to provide suste¬ 
nance for the pioneers who must blaze the trail 
of civilization. 

Warned to be unusually careful, Bob and his 
brother once again wended their way through 



SERIOUS NEWS 


67 


the mysterious aisles of the solemn forest, 
which had now become so familiar a field to 
them. Did they not know nearly every little 
animal that had its home there; and were they 
not on good terms with many that they scorned 
to injure, since their flesh was not wanted for 
food, nor their fur for trading purposes? 

Two hours after leaving home the young 
pioneers came across the tracks of a deer, and, 
finding that the trail was fresh, they started 
to follow. The wind was in their faces, so that 
everything seemed favorable for stalking the 
quarry, should they find that the animal was 
browsing in one of the little grassy glades 
which they knew were close at hand. 

And, true enough, as they thus advanced 
cautiously, they sighted a noble buck feeding 
as though all unconscious of danger. Foot by 
foot the boys crept closer, intent on securing 
such splendid quarry. 

This time it was Bob’s turn to fire first, 
while Sandy held himself in readiness to make 
sure of the buck if by chance his brother failed. 

Bob was looking along the barrel of his mus¬ 
ket when, without warning, a shot rang out 
from a point further away, followed instantly 
by a second and a third; but the buck, appar- 



68 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ently uninjured, leaped off as though about to 
speed beyond the danger zone. 

The instinct of the hunter would not allow 
Bob to hold back his fire, even though he was 
startled by this unexpected volley. And, after 
he pulled the trigger, the buck gave one great 
leap into the air, to fall a quivering mass on 
the moss-covered ground. 

Both lads hurried forward toward the fallen 
deer; but Bob felt a quiver of apprehension 
when he discovered three burly figures hasten¬ 
ing to arrive there ahead of them. 

“ Oh! they are French trappers, Bob! ” ex¬ 
claimed Sandy, though he betrayed not the 
least symptom of holding back. 

“ Yes, and we must be careful what we do! ” 
remarked Bob, uneasily. 

“ But it is your deer, for he fell when you 
fired! ” Sandy declared, stubbornly. 

In another minute the brothers had arrived 
at the spot, to find the foot of a dark-faced 
forest ranger planted on the dead buck, and 
three pairs of snapping black eyes looking at 
them in defiance. 

Apparently their right to the game was about 
to be seriously questioned! 



CHAPTER VII 


THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 

“ Keep cool, now, Sandy! ” advised Bob, as 
he felt his brother trembling with indignation 
because of this bold attitude on the part of the 
trio of French forest rangers, who evidently 
believed in the maxim that ‘‘ might makes 
right. ’ 1 

u But, Bob, see, they mean to take our game 
from us! 99 exclaimed the impetuous Sandy, 
who could not mistake the intentions of the 
French trappers. 

One of the men was a tall, gaunt fellow, with 
the eye of a hawk. He seemed to be something 
of a leading spirit among his comrades. Bob 
felt that he possessed a cruel nature, and such 
a man, he believed, would only too gladly con¬ 
spire with bloodthirsty Indians to surprise the 
new settlements of the English, and raze them 
to the ground. 

This fellow thrust himself forward, and, 
scowling darkly, demanded in fairly good Eng¬ 
lish : 


69 


70 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

“ What for you say zat ze game is yours! 
Haf you not ze eye to see zat aftaire ze first 
fire ze buck he nevaire run far! And as for zat 
bullet you send, poof! it haf been waste in ze 
air! ” and with that he snapped his fingers con¬ 
temptuously, as though that settled the matter 
beyond dispute. 

They were only a couple of half-grown boys, 
after all, and could hardly hold out against 
three burly men, accustomed to a strenuous life. 

But Sandy was quick to see things; nor did 
he have the prudence to hold his tongue when 
he believed he was being wronged. No doubt 
he had been more or less influenced in his 
opinion of these French traders and voyagenrs 
by what he had so often heard Pat O’Mara de¬ 
clare—that they were without exception the 
“ scum of the earth, and fit only for treason, 
stratagem and spoils.” 

But see, only one bullet has struck the deer 
in a place where it would down him — right 
here behind the shoulder! ” he cried, pointing 
with a trembling hand at the blood on the red 
hair of the animal. 

“ Zat is so, young monsieur,” said the 
Frenchman smoothly, and with a mocking bow; 
“ and I assure you it was just zere zat I aim 




THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


71 


my rifle. Sacre! Andre, and you, Jules, tell 
me if zis be not one fine shot! ” 

“ But, 99 cried the indignant Sandy immedi¬ 
ately, “ I tell you that is impossible! 99 

The tall and ugly Frenchman scowled, and 
then laughed harshly. 

“ Say you so, my leetle fire-eater! ” he ex¬ 
claimed. “ How it is zat you come to zat con¬ 
clusion? 99 

“ Because , 99 said the pioneer boy boldly, “ if 
you look you will see that the bullet that killed 
the buck entered from the right; and we were 
on that side, not you. So the honor of killing 
this deer belongs to my brother .’ 9 

The other Frenchmen evidently understood 
the point Sandy was making, even though not 
capable of speaking much English. They 
grinned, and cast quick glances at the dark¬ 
faced leader, as if wondering how he would 
take this thrust. 

The tall trapper scowled savagely, and half 
raised his empty gun menacingly. But Sandy 
never gave way a particle. He knew that his 
gun was still loaded, while, in all probability, 
those of the others had not been recharged; 
three shots had sounded, proving that all had 
taken a chance at hitting the elusive buck. 



72 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Zat is a great meestake,” the fellow ejacu¬ 
lated, fiercely; “ and it vould be well for you 
nevaire to repeat it to me. It makes me out 
von liar, and think you I vill stand for zat from 
a boy like you? My bullet be come out on ze 
right side, but be go in at ze left! ” 

“ Prove that, and neither of us will offer any 
objection to your claiming the game,” said 
Sandy, quickly; but the French trapper’s scowl 
grew blacker than ever, for no doubt be caught 
the chuckling of bis companions. 

“ It does not mattaire in ze least,” he re¬ 
marked, with bis teeth snapping together. 
“ Zis buck is my property. I take it as my 
right. All ze game in zis country is ours, and 
ze Eenglish steal every time zey shoot even von 
deer. Soon shall zey know who is ze real mas¬ 
ter here. Soon will zey repent zat zey come 
over ze mountains to zis land of the red men. 
Zey haf not take ze warning, let zem beware! ” 
Bob was thrilled by these words; they seemed 
to contain a threat of coming peril to the set¬ 
tlers. Undoubtedly Pat O’Mara had not 
brought his warning any too soon, for the 
crafty French trappers, many of them half- 
breeds too, had stirred up the Indians to the 
point of declaring actual hostilities. Why, per- 



THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


73 


haps the real purpose of these three men south 
of the Ohio was not to find new trapping fields, 
but to spy out the settlements, and learn of 
their weak points, so that later in the season 
they could lead the hordes of painted savages 
against them, with torch and tomahawk. 

Sandy was not yet ready to give up his claim 
to the meat. He knew well it had been the bul¬ 
let from his brother’s musket that had brought 
this noble buck to the earth. 

So the boy stepped a pace backward, and 
raised his musket, covering the form of the 
tallest French trapper. The fellow was evi¬ 
dently astonished at this show of resistance 
from those whom he was disposed to treat as 
helpless, half-grown cubs. 

“ If you want that deer,” said Sandy, 
plainly, “ you will have to prove your right 
to ownership. Turn him over, and show us the 
place where your bullet went in! When you 
have done that I will own up it is your game. 
But, until you do, we claim it. And I have here 
a loaded gun to back up my claim, while all of 
yours are empty! Keep your distance, or I 
will fire! ” 

Bob caught his breath. He had known his 
impetuous brother to do many unwise things 



74 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


in the past; but it seemed that he was now dis¬ 
tancing his own record. Nevertheless, since 
the gage of battle had been thrown down, Bob 
was not the one to shrink from accepting his 
share of its responsibilities. 

His first act was characteristic of the boy; 
for it was to slip a charge of powder into the 
barrel of his gun. If he could succeed in load¬ 
ing before any one of their enemies thought of 
doing likewise, there would be two guns to op¬ 
pose any move the French trappers might think 
of making. 

The tall man glared at Sandy as though he 
would give considerable to lay hands on the boy 
who dared threaten him. Still, somehow, he 
did not appear to fancy the way that gun kept 
pointing in his direction. And the face of the 
determined lad behind the gun told him that, if 
he ventured to make a single aggressive move¬ 
ment, Sandy would press the trigger his fore¬ 
finger was touching. 

The tall trapper muttered some words to his 
companions, who immediately began to back 
away, one moving toward the right, and the 
other toward the left. 

Faster flew Bob’s fingers in the effort to get 
that obstinate bullet rammed home before ho§- 



THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


75 


tilities actually opened. Sandy was compelled 

ii 

to keep his eyes fastened on the man directly 
in front of him, so that he could not watch the 
others; but all the same he knew how to control 
the situation. 

“ Remember, you sir, that, if either of your 
friends makes a movement, it will cost you your 
life, for I shall fire instantly; and at this short 
distance there is no chance for a miss. Tell 
them to keep back if you want to live! ’ ’ he said, 
firmly. 

The French trapper spluttered in rage, but 
he saw something in the face of the determined 
young pioneer that he did not exactly fancy. 
So he again spoke in his native tongue to his 
companions. 

They immediately commenced to hastily re¬ 
charge their own rifles, taking pattern from the 
actions of Bob. That worthy had, however, by 
this time succeeded in removing his ramrod, 
after sending the patched bullet home, and was 
even priming his gun so as to be in readiness 
for action. 

‘ 1 Stop! ’ 9 he exclaimed, as he menaced first 
one and then the second of the other French¬ 
men. “ This thing must be settled now and for 
good! You have forced us to stand up for our 



76 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


rights. Prove that the deer belongs to you, and 
we will not put in a claim. ” 

The tall man was once more calling out, and 
how Bob wished that he understood French, so 
that he could tell what was said, since he feared 
that it was intended for their undoing. 

Sure enough, as he turned once more toward 
the third trapper, he discovered that the man 
had disappeared, having dropped upon his face 
and rolled behind a neighboring tree. And, 
while he thus stood, filled with chagrin because 
he had been in a measure outwitted, the second 
fellow also made a quick leap that gave him 
temporary shelter behind another stump. 

The situation was becoming very much 
strained, and, with their three enemies thus 
widely scattered, Bob saw that he and his 
brother could not long hope to hold the whip 
hand over the situation. 

It seemed too bad to think that, after all, they 
must draw off, and allow these rascally allies 
of the Indians to lay hold of the game that by 
rights belonged to the Armstrong larder. But, 
perhaps it would be best to believe that “ the 
one who fights, and runs away, may live to fight 
another day.” 

“ Come, Sandy, we must go, and admit de- 



THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


77 


feat,” he said, quickly, fearing lest even now 
he find some trouble in convincing his hot¬ 
headed brother that their best policy lay in re¬ 
treating while they had the chance. 

Sandy shrugged his shoulders as if to show 
that he did not like to abandon such a fine buck 
when they had the best right to it. 

“ If we have to fight for it, let us begin by 
knocking over this rascal here! ’’ he exclaimed, 
waving his levelled musket menacingly at the 
dark-faced trapper. 

“ Wait, Sandy! ” cried Bob. “ See, there 
are other men coming on the run. If they prove 
to be Frenchmen we must get away! But per¬ 
haps they may be friends, and then we shall 
soon see to whom the deer belongs.” 

He had hardly spoken when Sandy let out a 
yell of delight. 

“ It is Simon Kenton! That is he waving 
his cap to us. Now hold your own, Bob, and do 
not think of leaving this game. They will see 
fair play on both sides. And I say again, if the 
deer belongs to these men I would not claim it 
for worlds. Huzza! what great luck we are 
having! ” 

Bob, too, was thrilled by the sight of Kenton, 
with several other men in buckskin, advancing 



78 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


through the forest, and closing in on the scene 
of the dispute. 

The trio of French trappers, unwilling to risk 
the chances of flight, immediately assumed a 
different aspect. Smiling affably, they waited 
to greet the newcomers, as though now per¬ 
fectly willing to submit the question to arbitra¬ 
tion. 

Simon Kenton, tall and lithe as a sycamore, 
hastened to shake hands with each of the Arm¬ 
strong boys. They had been favorites of the 
young woodranger ever since the first day he 
met them, when, with Daniel Boone, he had 
joined the pack-horse caravan headed for the 
banks of the Ohio. 

‘ 1 What’s going on here? ” he asked in his 
musical voice, as his keen eyes took in the bel¬ 
ligerent attitude of the two lads, and the fact 
that they were confronted by a trio of French 
trappers; for the other two had now come out 
from their places of hiding. 

“ Oh! only a dispute as to who shot the 
buck,” said Sandy, as though such an event 
were of every day occurrence with him. 

“ We were over yonder, while these men 
came from that direction,” said Bob, as he 
pointed one way and another. “ I was just 



THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


79 


about to fire, when there came a shot. The 
buck bounded off. Then two more guns spoke; 
but the deer only leaped the harder. I pressed 
the trigger and the buck dropped. When we 
came up, these men met us, and claimed the 
game. We told them that the only fatal bullet 
had entered from the right, and offered to 
prove our claim, or hand the prize over to them; 
but they said they meant to have it anyway. 
We were just trying to back up our words when 
you happened to come up. And, Sandy, we’ll 
let Simon Kenton decide whose bullet killed this 
fine buck.” 

Kenton looked toward the three French 
trappers, whom he seemed to know. 

“ Fairer words were never spoken, Armand 
Lacroix* and you know it,” he said, sternly. 
4 4 You would follow out the custom of your 

< f 

partner, Jacques Larue, with whom my young 
friends are already acquainted, and claim 
everything in sight because you are French, 
and they are English. But that sort of game 
will not go here. Bagstock, take a look at the 
buck, and tell me whether the bullet has gone 
clear through the body.” 

One of his comrades accordingly stooped, 
and threw the dead animal over on the other 



80 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


side; when it was plainly seen that there was 
no mark of a wound in the forequarter. 

‘ ‘ I knew it! ’ ’ cried Sandy, triumphantly, as 
he grinned at the baffled Frenchman. 

“ There you see, Lacroix,’’ observed Ken¬ 
ton, with a nod and a smile, “ the lead that 
brought this buck low came from the right; 
and this lad says he and his brother were on 
that quarter, while you stood on the left. But 
thar’s a fairer way to decide the truth than 
that. Hand me your gun, Lacroix; I promise 
that you shall have it again.” 

The French trapper looked daggers at the 
young ranger; but the English were now five 
to three French, and he knew the temper of 
Daniel Boone’s friend too well to test it to the 
breaking point. 

Accordingly he reached out his discharged 
rifle, one of those long-barrelled affairs that 
carried so deadly a messenger, when properly 
aimed. 

“ Bagstock, dig for the bullet that killed the 
buck,” Kenton went on. 

Sandy’s face was wreathed in a huge grin; 
for he instantly saw what the woodsman had 
in mind. 

“ Now you will learn the truth, M. Lacroix,” 



THE THREE FRENCH TRAPPERS 


81 


lie said, exultantly, as the burly forest ranger, 
laying his rifle aside, took out his hunting knife, 
and commenced to hack at the side of the deer, 
following the course of the bullet. 

The French trapper did not appear to be at 
all pleased with the probable outcome. Truth 
to tell, he had already discounted the result in 
advance, for he knew full well that himself and 
comrades had not the first claim on the buck. 

Presently Bagstock uttered an ejaculation of 
satisfaction, and, picking something up, handed 
it to Simon Kenton. It was the bullet that had 
brought down the deer, a trifle dented from 
striking the animaPs bones, but apparently in 
good shape for the purposes of identification. 

“ Just as I thought,” said Kenton, laugh¬ 
ingly. “ This bullet fits only in a musket such 
as these boys carry. Nobody could ever get it 
in a smaller calibre rifle like the ones you and 
your comrades own, Lacroix. So, that is set¬ 
tled, and settled the right way. And your road 
lies yonder. Bagstock, you and Andrew keep 
an eye on our friends, and if they so much as 
turn around within a mile of this, you know 
what to do! ” 

And thus the three baffled French trappers 
went away. They grumbled not, seeming to 



82 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


accept their defeat as the fortune of war; but 
the malignant look Armand Lacroix cast toward 
the two brothers told what was on his mind. 
If by chance they ever ran across his path 
again, and fortune was kind to him, the French¬ 
man would not be apt to forget how he had 
been baited by a couple of half-grown English- 
speaking American lads. And perhaps, under 
such conditions, he might be able to make things 
rather interesting for Bob and Sandy, particu¬ 
larly the latter. 



CHAPTER VIII 


SIMON KENTON, THE BORDERER 

When the boys returned to the settlement, 
bringing with them the buck, and accompanied 
by Simon Kenton and his two companions, they 
were warmly greeted. 

The story of how Sandy had braved the three 
crafty French trappers soon went abroad, and 
many congratulated the boy on his firm stand. 
They knew well that it was this secret French 
influence which was doing so much to make the 
Indians dig up the hatchet that had been buried 
at the treaty of Fort Stanwix some years pre¬ 
vious; and in every breast existed the same 
detestation for the cowardly traders who, for 
the sake of gain, would encourage the savages 
to resort once more to the torch, and the mur¬ 
derous tomahawk. 

Several men vanished from the post shortly 
after the boys returned. It was suspected that 
they had banded together with the idea of pur¬ 
suing the trio of Frenchmen, and putting it out 
of their power to carry their news to other In- 

83 


84 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


dian villages; for Pat O’Mara, who was one 
of this band, declared it to be his belief that 
these men were messengers, sent to bear the 
wampum belt of the great leader, Pontiac, to 
chiefs who were even then hesitating over what 
to do. 

The men came back on the next day, and, 
while none of them would say a word about the 
result of their mission, it was not believed that 
success had followed them, for they exhibited 
no symptoms of satisfaction. 

Simon Kenton was a great favorite in this 
Ohio River settlement. As the boon companion 
of the leading pioneer he would have been 
warmly welcome; but, besides that, he had such 
a genial nature that he made friends wherever 
he went. Contact with Daniel Boone was also 
doing wonders for this fine young borderer. 
By slow degrees he was conquering his numer¬ 
ous faults in the line of hasty temper, and 
quick action, that in the past had brought him 
so much trouble. 

His place among the men of the early days 
along the great river has long been recognized 
in history. While he lacked some of the won¬ 
derful qualities that made Boone beloved among 
the whites, and both feared and respected by 



SIMON KENTON, THE BORDERER 85 


the Indians, still Kenton has always held a 
strong place in the affection of those who know 
the wonderful exploits with which his life was 
crowned. 

Although Kenton was possessed of a par¬ 
ticularly amiable disposition among his friends, 
it is likely that his equal for recklessness was 
never known. History tells us that, during the 
course of his adventurous life along the border 
with Boone, and alone, he many times fell into 
the hands of the Indians, though they seemed 
unable to hold so slippery a customer. 

Eight times he was condemned to run the 
gauntlet, always one of the most cruel of the 
Indian inventions of horror; three times was 
he tied to the stake, sentenced to be burned 
alive; and once he was nearly slain by an ax. 

And yet, in spite of all these things, Simon 
Kenton lived to a green old age, dying in 1836 
within sight of the very spot where the Indians, 
fifty-eight years before, had made preparations 
to torture him to death. 

"While at the settlement of our friends Ken¬ 
ton and his two comrades made their head¬ 
quarters in an empty cabin, deserted by a settler 
who had gone back to the fair fields of Vir¬ 
ginia because his wife grieved for her family, 



86 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


and was too timid to stay where at any hour 
they could expect to hear the wild whoops of 
hostile Indians. 

Of course, as soon as it could be done in 
secret, the head men of the settlement sought to 
find out from Kenton whether the news brought 
by Pat O’Mara was founded on facts, or the 
result of a lively imagination. 

“ I have been in the eastern country,’ , re¬ 
plied the forest ranger, seriously; “ and can 
only say this, that thar are all the signs of a 
big outbreak. Down in Kentucky Boone has 
had to be on the defensive all the time, because 
the Shawanees did not feel themselves bound 
by the Fort Stanwix treaty. My friends, I re¬ 
gret to say to you that the outlook is dark. Be 
on your guard. If this winter passes without 
a general war on the part of half a dozen 
tribes, some of us will believe that we are poor 
prophets.” 

And, later on, he told in detail what he and 
his friends had seen and heard. The news was 
distressing to these people, so many hundreds 
of miles away from help, and dependent on 
themselves alone to combat the gathering 
clouds. 

But there were brave hearts among those 



SIMON KENTON, THE BORDERER 


87 


early pioneers. Even the women refused to be¬ 
lieve that they were to be overwhelmed, and 
made to perish from the face of the earth. From 
such stock have our forefathers sprung, and, 
looking back, we have need of every adjective 
at our command to express admiration for the 
valor of these Ohio pioneers. 

David Armstrong felt that he had much to 
be thankful for in those days. His wife and 
little family were in perfect health; but there 
was one thing that seemed to be giving the 
pioneer anxiety. 

Never did any one come from over the dis¬ 
tant mountains but that Mr. Armstrong was 
eagerly inquiring whether the newcomer car¬ 
ried a letter for him. Thus far disappointment 
had always been his portion; yet, after each 
period of deep despondency, he would once 
more pick up fresh hope, and it was usually the 
brave soul of his gentle wife that put new am¬ 
bitions in his breast. 

Years ago in Richmond, Mr. Armstrong had 
been tricked by a cousin, in whom he placed 
implicit confidence. The result had been that 
this rascal had virtually stolen all of Mr. Arm¬ 
strong’s heritage, which he had brought from 
the old country. 



88 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


David had gone to law about it, but, even in 
this early day, the delays were most vexatious; 
and for years had the case been pending. Mr. 
Armstrong never lost hope that, in the end, it 
would be decided in his favor, and that he 
would be summoned to Richmond to take back 
that which had been fraudulently wrested from 
his hands. 

He indulged in many rosy-tinted dreams of 
what wonderful things he would bring back 
with him, to add to the happiness of his little 
brood, should such a wonderful piece of good 
luck come his way. 

Mary and he had decided that they liked this 
beautiful country too well to ever return again 
to Virginia. Come what would, they belonged 
here on the river that flowed between forest- 
clad banks into the golden west. 

Pat O’Mara still hung about the settlement, 
though at any time he was apt to disappear. 
While present, he made his home with the Arm¬ 
strongs, and there never was a more welcome 
guest at a pioneer’s cabin than the Irish trapper 
with these good friends. 

Bob and Sandy took him over the line of 
their traps, and learned many clever little tricks 
that would count when the real time came for 



SIMON KENTON, THE BORDERER 


89 


taking fur-bearing animals. Up to now their 
efforts in that line had been more in the way of 
experiments, so as to get used to handling traps, 
and keeping the sly little animals from scenting 
the presence of human beings around their 
haunts. 

Kenton and his friends had gone on their 
way. They were really scouting, in the hope 
and expectation of learning something about 
the anticipated Indian uprising, so that the 
weaker settlements could withdraw in time to 
more secure quarters; for the winter, at least, 
combining with stronger posts. 

“ I wanted father to let me go with Simon 
Kenton,” said Sandy, despondently, the day 
after the departure of the frontiersman. 

“ But' of course he refused,” said Bob, 
quickly; “ and rightly, too. You are too young 
to be wandering around the country as he does, 
Sandy; and think, what would mother do with¬ 
out you? It’s all well enough for Kenton, who 
is a man full grown, and has no home. You 
belong here, Sandy, with us. How could I at¬ 
tend to all the traps, and hunt in the bargain, 
without you? I am glad father said no; glad 
for my own sake, glad for mother, and glad for 
you, too f ” 




90 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


The reference to his mother touched the 
heart of impulsive Sandy. 

“ Well,” he said, slowly, “ I guess it is best 
I stay for another year or so, anyway; but, 
some day, I’m going to follow in the footsteps 
of Simon Kenton.” 

Bob said no more, knowing the nature of his 
brother only too well, and by another day 
Sandy had apparently quite gotten over his 
grieving. 

September was now moving along very fast, 
and, almost before they would be aware of it, 
the great forest trees must be taking on the 
red and gold of autumn hues, as the first frost 
came down from the north. 

Each time the boys went out they set another 
trap, until the entire number they owned were 
in use. The prospect ahead looked rosy, 
indeed, if only that story in connection with 
the threatened Indian war could be for¬ 
gotten. 

Sometimes it came to Bob in the dead of 
night, to cause him more or less grave thought, 
for his was a nature unlike Sandy’s light¬ 
hearted one; and, before Pat O’Mara departed, 
he had once more impressed upon the older lad 
the necessity for unusual care in making their 




SIMON KENTON, THE BORDERER 91 


rounds of the traps, or venturing into the sur¬ 
rounding forest in search of game. 

And, on this night in question, it seemed to 
Bob that he awoke from a very vivid dream, 
in which the settlement was being attacked by 
countless painted Indians. So startling an 
effect did the dream have upon him that he 
even sat up on his cot and listened, as though 
he half expected to hear the distant yells of 
dancing red men as they surrounded the stock¬ 
ade. 

All seemed still, however, and Bob was about 
to drop back again when, glancing in the direc¬ 
tion of the little window, he was surprised to 
find that a flickering glow came and went, as 
though a fire might be burning without. 

Hastily the boy crept from under his covers, 
and went over to open the door, in order to 
thrust his head outside; but, hardly had he 
done this, than he received a shock that dazed 
him, for he discovered that the entire side of 
the cabin was in flames! 



CHAPTER IX 


THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED - IN 

“ Fire! ” 

Wildly Bob gave tongue, as he managed to 
draw on his garments. The whole of the cabin’s 
inmates appeared on the scene in answer to his 
cries, and all of them filled with the gravest ap¬ 
prehensions. 

There was no need to ask questions, for Bob 
had flown out of the door, leaving it open be¬ 
hind him. 

“ Get buckets, and dip into the barrel! ” 
shouted Mr. Armstrong. 

Already had Bob started his work against 
the devouring flames, which were licking up the 
side of the cabin, as though bent on destroying 
the weeks of work on the part of the pioneers, 
in this one dreadful half-hour. 

Even Kate helped, finding some sort of pan 
in which she could carry water, and dash it on 
the burning logs. Bob quicklv saw that the 
barrel would soon be exhausted at this rate. 


92 


THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED-IN 93 


They must have a further supply of water if 
they hoped to battle successfully with the 
greedy flames. 

“ Come with me to the spring, Sandy! 99 he 
cried huskily. “ We must have more water! 
This way, Mr. Brewster, with your bucket! 
And please run with all your might! ” 

A neighbor had arrived on the scene, for the 
cries of the family as they fought the devouring 
element had been heard, and there was no need 
to ask what had happened, since the flames 
could be seen for some distance. 

Mr. Brewster had come up with his musket in 
one hand, and an empty bucket gripped in the 
other. Thus lie was prepared for almost any¬ 
thing that might arise, for, with all this talk of 
an Indian uprising in the air, it was only natu¬ 
ral that he might suspect there would be need 
for the firearm as well as the wooden pail. 

The three hastened to the spring, in order to 
secure a further addition to the supply of water. 
Before they had gone half way another figure 
showed up, being a second neighbor who, like 
Mr. Brewster, had come prepared to cope with 
any emergency. He joined the procession of 
runners; and in this order they arrived at the 
spring, which was located about eighty yards 



94 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


from the Armstrong cabin, and used by several 
families in common. 

Fortunately it was of some depth, so that 
quite a pool formed at its “ run-off.’’ Here 
they filled their buckets, and started back just 
as fast as they could go without spilling the 
contents. 

Others began to arrive, for, as the clamor in¬ 
creased, every cabin in the settlement yielded 
up its quota of eager assistants. In a little 
community like this, where hundreds of miles 
separated them from civilization, with untold 
perils surrounding them, the interest of one 
must ever be the interest of all. They knew not 
what terrible danger might be abroad; but, 
with the bold spirit that marked the early 
pioneer, they sallied forth to grapple with 
whatever threatened. 

And these men did veoman service. Some 
slapped at the creeping flames with garments 
that had been saturated with water; others 
beat frantically with branches and bushes; 
while the few who had means for carrying 
water dashed this natural enemy of fire on the 
flames. 

Thus it was only a short time before they got 
the fire under control, for many hands made 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED-IN 95 


light work. Some damage had been done, it is 
true, and Mr. Armstrong would have to do 
more or less repairing to his cabin ere it would 
be in as good shape as before the fire. Still, 
he and his good wife felt that they had much 
for which to be grateful. 

“ How did it start! ” asked old Anthony 
Brady. 

There was latent suspicion in his voice, for he 
had seen that the fire had all been on the out¬ 
side, which would indicate that it certainly 
could not have started in the interior from a 
smouldering brand falling beyond the hearth, 
such as had been the case in one other alarm 
they had had earlier in the season, before the 
cool nights had gone. 

“ I think I can make a guess ,’’ remarked Mr. 
Brewster, who had also been looking about 
while actively engaged in fighting the devour¬ 
ing element. “ You can see that it was on the 
side where Mrs. Armstrong has her soap-kettle. 
She must have left a bed of red ashes after 
rendering down the bear fat with the lye, and, 
during the night, the wind swept some of these 
against the logs. Perhaps there was a handful 
of dead leaves to act as tinder; and the rest 
came easy.” 



96 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ But,” said Bob’s mother, quickly, “ I did 
not have a fire under the soap-kettle yesterday, 
nor the day before. Indeed, it is a full week 
now since I used it. ’ ’ 

The men looked quickly at one another. 
They realized now that there might be some¬ 
thing more about this midnight burning than 
any of them had ventured to imagine. Log 
cabins do not take fire so easily, in the middle 
of the night, without some human agency back 
of the catastrophe. 

“ Come,” said Anthony Brady, hoarsely, 
“ this must be looked into. If some wicked 
person put the torch to this cabin, we ought to 
find out who he was, and punish him accord¬ 
ingly. ’ 7 

By this time there were fully a dozen men 
around, and nearly all of them carried guns of 
some pattern, either the long rifles of the day, 
or muskets that at close quarters were just as 
deadly. 

Stern faces grew even more set as they heard 
their leader thus declare himself. If a house- 
burner were abroad, then he must surely belong 
to one of two species — for they could not 
imagine any but a sneaking Indian, or a mali¬ 
cious French trapper, doing so mean a deed. 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED - IN 97 


Several of the most expert trailers began to 
circle around at some little distance from the 
cabin. They carried either rude horn lanterns, 
or else burning torches of fat pine, with which 
each cabin was usually well supplied, since 
candles were not plentiful in those days, and 
had to be made, like the soap, from the surplus 
fat taken from some bear that had been secured 
for food. 

Bob and Sandy came together while thus em¬ 
ployed. 

“ Did you hear what old Reuben Jacks said, 
Bob? ” asked the older boy, meaningly. 

“ You mean about that Frenchman, Armand 
Lacroix? ” the other lad replied. 

“ Yes,” Sandy went on, eagerly; “ they 
hunted for him high and low, but without suc¬ 
cess. Reuben believes that he, or one of his 
men, must have done this out of revenge, be¬ 
cause we defied him and took away the buck 
when he had declared he meant to possess it.” 

“ It may be so,” Bob observed, thoughtfully. 
“ I have heard so much about the treachery 
and trickery of those traders from the north, 
that I would not think it beyond one of them 
to try and burn a cabin in the night. That man 
hates us both, and you particularly, because of 



98 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


tlie way you held your gun at his head. I shall 
never forget how his black eyes glittered as he 
looked at you on leaving. It was as if he 
wanted to remember you for years to come.” 

“ Listen! some one is calling! ” exclaimed 
Sandy just then 

“ It is old Reuben Jacks, and he has made 
some sort of discovery; or else he would not 
lift his cracked voice in that shrill way. Come, 
Sandy, let us run thither, and see what it may 
be.” 

The two boys, both of whom were now carry¬ 
ing their guns, even though but partly dressed, 
made a dash toward the spot where the shouts 
went up. They overtook several others; and 
in another minute quite a group had gathered 
around the figure of the gaunt old woodranger. 

“ What is it, Reuben; what have you found 
to give tongue that way! 99 demanded Anthony 
Brady, with authority in his heavy voice. 

“ Look, neighbors! ” said the other, point¬ 
ing down toward his feet. 

“ Footprints leading away from the cabin! 99 
exclaimed one. 

“ And made by an Injun, too, for the toes 
turn in! 99 came from another. 

“ Reuben, you have made a valuable discov- 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED - IN 99 


ery,’’ Brady remarked, after he had himself 
bent over to examine the footprints in the soft 
soil, which the keen and practised eye of the 
old man had detected. “ An Indian has been 
here after night set in; for you all remember 
there was just a little rainfall at dark, and this 
trail has been made fresh since then.” 

‘ ‘ It is the track of the burner! Let us follow 
it, and punish the hand that held the torch! ” 
cried an excitable young man, waving his gun 
above his head. 

Bob and Sandy exchanged a quick glance; and 
the latter seemed to ask a question of his 
brother, since Bob quickly remarked: 

“ No, this does not prove that we were 
wrong; for Lacroix may have been in league 
with the Indians; and he could easily engage 
one of the red men to come here to do his work 
for him. It may be that the torch of a Potta- 
wottomi or a Shawanee set fire to our cabin; 
but, Sandy, the hand of a Frenchman was back 
of it! ” 

With Reuben in the van, half a dozen of the 
men started following the fresh trail. They 
could have but little hope of coming upon the 
culprit, unless the Indian might have hidden 
near by, wishing to enjoy the confusion and 



100 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


wild alarm his wanton act had caused; but, 
since they were so aroused, it might be just 
as well to scour the immediate neighborhood 
in order to give vent to some of their enthusi¬ 
asm. 

A few of the settlers had gone home. They 
could not tell what this midnight burning might 
signify. Perhaps other incendiaries were 
abroad, and at any moment another fire would 
call for attention. . > 

Every man was keyed up to a pitch where it 
would have gone hard with any Indian or half- 
breed falling into his clutches just then. The 
entire settlement was astir. Women had armed 
themselves, not knowing but that a general 
attack might be forthcoming. And the wives 
and daughters of these early Ohio pioneers were 
well fitted to be the mates of the bold spirits 
that braved the unknown perils of the great 
wilderness. Many of them could handle a gun 
almost as well as the men. 

The tracking party had now entered the 
dense woods. They had been warned by the 
older and more cautious members of the com¬ 
munity to be careful lest they fall into some 
cunning ambush. That plain trail may have 
been left purposely in order to excite their 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED - IN 101 


anger, and bring them under the guns of con¬ 
cealed enemies, who would shoot them down 
without mercy. 

This was Indian nature. Treachery went 
hand-in-hand with the war tactics of the red 
men. They thought it no wrong to lure their 
foes into a trap, and then slaughter them as 
wolves might be cut down. Pontiac himself 
had shown how exceedingly clever and crafty a 
warfare could be exercised against the white 
man. 

At the important trading post of Michili- 
mackinac hundreds of his Indians, mostly Sacs 
and Chippewas, had been loitering around the 
fort for days. On the king’s birthday they had 
proceeded to celebrate by a great game of ball. 

The sport had been carried on with all the 
customary noise and confusion; and the un¬ 
suspicious garrison allowed the players to rush 
within the stockade when the ball, seemingly 
by accident, was knocked over the high palisade. 

Under their blankets many of the Indians car¬ 
ried muskets, with the barrels sawed off short; 
while all had their tomahawks and knives. At 
a given signal they fell upon the garrison, and, 
although a terrible fight ensued, the surprise 
was complete, so that a massacre had followed. 



102 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Nine other trading posts had fallen in much 
the same way, and the most important of all, 
Detroit, had a close call, when the sachem Pon¬ 
tiac laid siege with his allied tribes. 

Although time had passed since these ex¬ 
citing days, the wily chieftain still lived to plot 
new schemes for the destruction of the en¬ 
croaching whites. And never was his dreaded 
name mentioned in a weak border settlement 
without a shudder. 

This was why the older men had warned the 
more hotheaded to be careful lest they run into 
an ambuscade; for it was a favorite trick 
among the Indians to lure rash settlers away 
from the shelter of their stockade by some such 
stratagem, and then fall upon them in over¬ 
powering numbers. 

Clouds hid the moon from sight, but, Only for 
dense foliage of the forest trees, the night 
would hardly be called dark. There were just 
seven in the band that pushed through the 
woods, following that trail. Old Reuben, at the 
head, held his blazing and smoking pine torch 
low, so that his eagle eyes might keep track of 
the imprint of those moccasins that toed-in. 
Behind him came the others, with guns ready 
for immediate use, and eyes trying to pierce 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED-IN 103 


the gloom that loomed up ahead like a black 
wall. 

No doubt after a time, when they had cooled 
down somewhat, a more sensible view of the 
situation would come over these eager trailers. 
Finding that the Indian had headed straight 
away from the settlement, they must realize 
the folly of trying to follow him further in the 
perilous night time, and retrace their steps back 
home. 

Once they heard a crash, as some frightened 
wild animal floundered through the bushes 
ahead. It must have been a prowling bear, for 
no other creature would make so great a noise. 
Again their alert ears, that could pick up the 
faintest sounds, caught the snort of a deer that 
may have been viewing the advance of these 
strange fireflies through the woods until they 
came too near for comfort, and then fled swiftly 
with tremendous bounds. 

Each time the men had gripped their guns, 
thinking that something was about to occur; 
but only once more to relax the nervous 
strain. 

“ I surely saw something move ahead, Bob! ” 
exclaimed Sandy, who was alongside his brother 
in the forward movement. 



104 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Where! ” asked the other, quickly; while 
the nearest neighbor cocked his head to listen, 
half raising his musket menacingly. 

“ Over there where that tree hangs down 
across the way,” replied Sandy, pointing with 
his gun. 

“ Well, we must soon know whether it means 
anything,” replied Bob, “ for we are headed 
that way right now.” 

“ Look! look! it must be a man; and he is 
waving a white flag to us! He does not want 
us to fire upon him at sight! ” cried Sandy, a 
few seconds later. 

“ Yes, you are right,” declared his brother. 

Of course the attention of all the members of 
the tracking party had now been attracted 
toward the moving object, which every one 
could see was a piece of white cloth being waved 
up and down. They changed their course just 
a little, and headed in a bunch for the spot. 

“ Be careful, lads! ” said old Reuben. “ No¬ 
body kin tell what the sly critters may be up to. 
Keep yer hands on yer triggers, but don’t shoot 
till I give the word. Unless I’m mightily mis¬ 
taken, that arm is an Injun’s. Spread out a 
leetle, lads. He wants us to get closer still, 
afore he gives over wavin’ that rag. Thar! 



THE MOCCASIN TRACKS THAT TOED-IN 105 


he’s dropped the thing! Easy now, and wait! 
Ha! ” 

As the old woodranger gave vent to this last 
exclamation, the unseen party who had been 
signalling to them from behind the big oak, 
suddenly stepped into view, holding both hands 
above his head in token of amity. 

Both Bob and Sandy uttered cries of aston¬ 
ishment. 

“ Why,” cried the latter, “ see Bob, it’s our 
friend, Blue Jacket! ” 



CHAPTER X 


BLUE JACKET’S WARNING 

* ‘ Shoot the cabin burner 1 ’ ’ 

“ He made the tracks we’ve been following! 
A rope would come in handy! ” 

“ The sneaking hound, to turn on the boys 
who saved his life! But it’s only what we ought 
to expect from an Injun! ” 

“ He ought to be made meat for the crows, 
men! ’ ’ 

These angry exclamations arose from the 
group of settlers as they saw who was coming 
from behind the giant oak. Both Bob and 
Sandy, however, never for a moment dreamed 
of suspecting the young Indian brave of being 
concerned in the recent outrage. 

They had found him seriously wounded at 
the time of the arrival of the emigrants on the 
Ohio. True, his hurts had doubtless been re¬ 
ceived during the preceding attack upon the 
camp of the pioneers, but the two boys did not 
let that influence them. 

Something seemed to draw them to Blue 

106 


BLUE JACKET’S WARNING 


107 


Jacket, and they had nursed him tenderly in 
the new cabin, until one night he had vanished. 
The older settlers, who did not believe that a 
true heart could beat under a red skin, were 
loud in their declaration that the boys had only 
nursed a snake that would come back to sting 
them. 

But, when Sandy was captured and carried 
away to the Shawanee village, it was by the aid 
of Blue Jacket that his release was finally ac¬ 
complished. 

Since that day they had seen more or less of 
the young Indian. He occasionally turned up 
at the Armstrong cabin, to spend a few days 
with his white friends, of whom he seemed very 
fond; then he would vanish in a mysterious 
way without saying good-bye, to once more re¬ 
appear, weeks later, always bringing in a deer, 
or a wild turkey, as a present for the sweet 
little mother who reigned as queen of the fron¬ 
tier cabin. 

Sandy, more impetuous than his brother, 
though not any more fond of the young Indian, 
hearing these hasty and ugly remarks, imme¬ 
diately sprang forward, and, placed himself in 
front of Blue Jacket, spread out his arms as he 
exclaimed with a show of anger: 



108 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Don’t any one of yon dare to lift a hand 
against him! He is our friend, tried and true! 
Why, sooner than try to burn our cabin, Blue 
Jacket would put his own hand in the fire and 
let it be consumed. I stand for him. The one 
who raises his hand against Blue Jacket will 
have to fight Sandy Armstrong! ” 

After that, of course, the guns that had been 
half-raised were allowed to drop once more; 
but the dark scowls did not leave the stern faces 
of those who gathered around. 

“ See here, Sandy, and you, too, Bob,” said 
one of their comrades, as he shook his head 
gravely; “ it may look all right to you; but 
there are some of us who fail to see anything 
good in Indians. We have followed the tracks 
of the redskin who tried to burn your father’s 
cabin. It led us here. And, from behind a tree, 
comes this young brave. We believe he is the 
guilty one, and, unless he can prove his inno¬ 
cence, we think we have a right to punish him, 
even to the extent of taking his life! ” 

“ You shall not harm a hair of his head! ” 
cried Sandy. “ I tell you it is impossible that 
he could have done so horrible a thing as try to 
burn our cabin. It may have been an Indian, 
as the tracks prove; but Blue Jacket, never! ” 



BLUE JACKET’S WARNING 


109 


1 ‘ Listen, ’ ’ said the cooler Bob; ‘ ‘ why should 
he wish to attract our attention if he had done 
this deed? All he had to do was to remain 
hidden behind that tree, and we would have 
passed by without seeing him. ’ ’ 

“ But tell us why he came out holding his 
hands above his head; and for what reason 
should he wave the white rag? ” demanded a 
fiery, half-grown fellow. 

‘‘You would have done the same had you 
seen several men armed, and ready to shoot at 
a sound, passing through the woods with 
torches,” replied Bob, soberly. “ Blue Jacket 
was wise enough to understand that sometimes 
people shoot first, and ask questions after¬ 
ward.” 

The young Indian had listened with an im¬ 
passive face to what was being said. From 
childhood had he been trained to hide all signs 
of emotion as unbecoming to a warrior. While 
he did not fully understand the reason for this 
hot-tempered action on the part of the young 
whites, still, doubtless, he could draw certain 
conclusions. 

“No burn cabin. Blue Jacket been way off 
in hills and think best see white father, Sandy, 
Bob. On way when see fire flash through trees. 



110 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Hide so can know what mean — not want get 
hurt, so wave white flag. Ugh! Blue Jacket 
talk with straight tongue; no lie! ’ ’ 

He held up his right hand, and looked aloft 
through the branches of the trees, as though 
calling upon the Great Spirit to witness that 
what he so solemnly declared was true. 

“ If he swears that he is innocent, let him 
prove it! ” demanded the same young hothead 
who had before spoken. 

“ Just as you say,” returned Bob, who had 
the utmost confidence in his copper-colored 
friend. “ Come, let us all go back to where 
those moccasin tracks are, which we have fol¬ 
lowed from our cabin. We will soon see if they 
were made by those Blue Jacket has on.” 

“ But that is foolish,” remarked one of the 
others. 4 4 All moccasins are pretty much alike; 
and they make tracks that are as much the same 
as peas in a pod.” 

“ Is that so, Reuben? ” asked Bob, appealing 
to the old and experienced woodsman, who 
knew Indians like a scholar would the pages of 
a printed book. 

“ It air not,” came the positive reply. “ In 
the fust place, every tribe has its own way o’ 
makin’ footwear; and I kin tell at a look jest 



BLUE JACKET’S WARNING 


111 


which belongs ter a Sliawanee, a Sac, a Potta- 
wottomi, a Delaware or an Iroquois. Even 
among the Six Nations thar’s much difference, 
a Seneca’s being built different from the mocca¬ 
sin of a Mohawk or on Oneida.” 

“ I thought so,” said Bob, smiling as though 
pleased. “ And, Reuben, tell us if even Shawa- 
nee moccasins may not be known apart by some 
peculiar mark? ” 

“ A-plenty of times I’ve seen it. This one 
might have a patch at the toe; another show 
some mark whar the skin had been worn; or 
p’raps a crease straight acrost the foot,” the 
old man replied, frankly. 

“ And did you notice any such mark about 
the track we have been following — anything 
you would know again, no matter where you 
saw it? ” Bob went on; for his own eyes had 
told him something far back, that had to do 
with this very thing. 

“ Yes, thar war such a mark, Bob,” re¬ 
turned the experienced woodsman. “ Many 
times I saw it in the track. It looked like the 
Indian’s moccasin kept cornin’ off, and he hed 
tied a piece of deerskin thong around his foot. 
Besides, it was bigger nor any footprint I’ve 
run acrost this many a day.” 



112 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Look down at the feet of Blue Jacket, Reu¬ 
ben ; and here is one of the tracks we followed. 
Tell me, did the same foot make both prints? ” 
and Bob, as he thus spoke, pointed at the ground 
where the young warrior stood. 

The settler was already on his knees. He 
took a slender stick, and carefully measured 
the marked track of the moccasin. Then he ap¬ 
plied the rule to the plainly seen imprint left 
by Blue Jacket as he voluntarily moved aside. 

Every eye saw immediately that there were 
fully two inches difference between the length 
of the unknown cabin-burner’s foot and that of 
Blue Jacket. 

‘ ‘ I knew it! ” cried Sandy, as he turned with 
flashing eyes toward the one who had demanded 
speedy justice on general principles. “ You 
see how foolish you were, Abner; to want to 
do him harm without the least evidence against 
him, only that he is an Indian. Blue Jacket is 
a friend to the Armstrong family, even if there 
are others who do not like him.” 

The Indian stood with folded arms. He cast 
a quick glance of affection in the direction of 
Sandy when that impulsive individual spoke so 
warmly in his defence; but toward the others 
of the group he maintained a cold reserve. Like 



BLUE JACKET’S WARNING 


113 


all of his kind he scorned to show what was in 
his heart, when the eyes of those who were un¬ 
friendly to him watched his every move. 

“ Shall we go on? ” asked old Reuben, look¬ 
ing dubious as he spoke. 

“ It would be useless, I think,” Bob observed. 
“ We know by now that the man who put the 
torch to our cabin has fled. He can travel twice 
as swiftly through the forest as we could follow 
on his trail. Let him go. After all, no great 
harm has been done; and another time we may 
catch him at his work, if he comes back.” 

“ Besides,” added Reuben, “ we stand a 
chance of runnin’ into ambush, if so be he has 
friends near by. If you ask me, I say return 
to the settlement.” 

Of course, after that, even the impetuous Ab¬ 
ner could not venture a protest; and he cer¬ 
tainly had no desire to continue the useless hunt 
alone, or with a single companion. Accordingly 
the party turned back, and threaded the dark 
forest aisles, heading in a direction that would 
bring them to the settlement. 

Bob and Sandy kept Blue Jacket between 
them. They had also fallen back a little, so 
that they could talk undisturbed; for Bob had 
seen something in the manner of the Indian to 



114 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


convince him the other had sought the home of 
the Armstrongs with some important message. 

“ It has been long since Blue Jacket visited 
his white brothers,” remarked Bob, who, when 
holding converse with the other, usually spoke 
after the manner of the Shawanees. 

“ Blue Jacket has been far away to the land 
of the rising sun, and the country of the big 
waters,” replied the other, in his low musical 
voice. “ Everywhere the war drum is sound¬ 
ing and the dance keeps up night after night. 
The great chief Pontiac has sent the wampum 
belt to all the tribes, and they thirst for blood. 
It may come with the new moon; it will not 
keep long. Blue Jacket is an Indian; but he 
loves his white brothers, Bob and Sandy. Long 
distance he come to tell them to be ready. Soon 
along border cabins go up in smoke, and many 
pale face squaws and papoose mourn for white 
braves who come not back. I have spoken! ” 



CHAPTER XI 


TENDING THEIR TRAPS 

The manner of Blue Jacket while saying this 
was grave. He had no liking for the whites, 
save the family of David Armstrong. His sym¬ 
pathies must be wholly bound up in the inter¬ 
ests of his race. And yet, unable to rest easy 
when he knew these good friends would soon be 
in peril from another uprising of the allied 
tribes between the Great Lakes and the Ohio, 
he had come to give them warning. 

Bob appreciated what a tremendous sacrifice 
this act must have been to the red brave, for, 
in bringing his terrible news, Blue Jacket was 
in part proving false to his teachings, and the 
interests of his tribe. 

“ You must come home with us, and see our 
parents ,’ 5 Bob insisted, when he thought he saw 
an inclination on the part of the other to leave 
them. 

“ Tell no more than that, Bob,” remarked the 
young Indian. “ All can say keep open eyes 

for bad times along Ohio. Big chief think now 

115 


116 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


can drive paleface settlers back other side 
mountains, never return. Many tribes send 
back wampum belt wrap up round tomahawk. 
Know that mean hatchet dug up; and ready to 
fight. Watch out, see storm, get in fort! Blue 
Jacket sorry, no can help.” 

When it was known that fresh word had 
come in connection with the dreaded uprising, 
the pioneers of the Ohio would find new cause 
for anxiety. But there had never been a time 
since their arrival that they had not been con¬ 
cerned about the hostile attitude of the Indians. 
Despite the protestations of some of the tribes 
as to their desire for peace, even to smoking 
the pipe with their white brothers, few believed 
that they meant it; and hence no man ever went 
far from his cabin without making sure to 
have his gun along, and that the priming was 
in the pan, ready for immediate use. 

Mr. Armstrong was indeed glad to see Blue 
Jacket, for while at first he had distrusted him 
as an Indian, after the rescue of Sandy he 
could not doubt the loyalty of the young Shaw- 
anee. 

In the morning he hoped to find out more par¬ 
ticulars concerning the important news the new¬ 
comer brought, and which fully corroborated 



TENDING THEIR TRAPS 


117 


that which Pat O’Mara and Simon Kenton had 
carried, after their trips to the north. 

But, when morning came, Blue Jacket could 
not be found. He had vanished again, after 
his usual way of leaving the cabin of his 
friends. 

4 4 Here is some Indian picture writing on this 
piece of white birch bark, that he left behind 
him,” said Sandy, when he had looked every¬ 
where without finding the dusky guest, who had 
slept on the hard floor by the fire, using for a 
bed only a bearskin thrown on the hard 
puncheon floor. 

By this time the two boys had learned to read 
the sign language of the Indians to a fair ex¬ 
tent. Blue Jacket himself had taken pains to 
teach them many things that had to do with 
his people, and their odd ways. 

Consequently, between them Bob and Sandy 
started to figure out just what the various signs 
stood for. But this time the friendly young 
Shawanee had confined his efforts to one sub¬ 
ject. Cabins and wigwams were given over to 
the flames, for the smoke curled up above each 
one. The various rude figures in sight they 
could understand to be Indian braves, carrying 
on the massacre, dancing around fires, and 



118 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


waving objects in the air that must stand for 
scalps. 

4 ‘ It is only the same warning he gave us last 
night,’’ said Bob. “ He wants to make us be¬ 
lieve that all this is coming, and we must keep 
on guard, day and night. But there was little 
need of that, because in Anthony Brady we have 
a leader who sleeps with one eye open. What¬ 
ever comes, this little Ohio River settlement will 
never be caught napping.” 

It was indeed a time that tried men’s souls. 
And even pioneer boys felt the terrible responsi¬ 
bility resting on their young shoulders, for, as 
soon as a lad could aim and fire a gun, he be¬ 
came one of the defenders of the home, and 
must face danger bravely, or be branded as a 
coward by his kind. 

‘ ‘ When we go out hunting after this we must 
always be on the watch for sneaking enemies,” 
said Sandy, with a tinge of disgust in his 
voice. 

“ I only hope the scare will die out,” ven¬ 
tured Bob, though his manner told that he did 
not have great faith in this direction. 

“ Well, we must not pull too long faces about 
it,” remarked Sandy; “ because poor mother is 
dreadfully worried even now about what may 



TENDING THEIR TRAPS 


119 


come to pass. We can’t prevent it, do what we 
will, and there’s no use crying till you’re hurt.” 

From that time on a feeling of uneasiness 
rested over the little settlement. Men went 
about their daily tasks as usual; but many 
suspicious glances were cast upon the heavy 
forest beyond the clearing, as though they 
might be wondering how soon it would be be¬ 
fore the shrill war cries of the painted foe burst 
from those gloomy depths, and blazing cabins 
told that the worst had come to pass. 

And the women stuck closer than ever to their 
homes, while children were never allowed to 
stray away, as had been their habit during the 
earlier summer. Around the humble tables, 
when the supper was spread, the talk was chiefly 
concerning such shreds of news as floated in to 
them from other settlements. 

As yet, so far as they could learn, no con¬ 
certed outbreak had occurred, although, further 
south and west, the Sliawanees were, as usual, 
harassing the settlements founded by Daniel 
Boone. But these valiant pioneers of Kentucky 
were so quick on the trigger, and so ready to 
match their cunning against that of the red foe, 
that the Indians had not made any great prog¬ 
ress toward wiping out the hardy invaders. 



120 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


The lateness of the season caused some of 
the more hopeful to believe that the contem¬ 
plated uprising might be delayed until spring, 
since winter was seldom a time for Indian war¬ 
fare. 

As they already had every trap they pos¬ 
sessed in use, Bob and Sandy knew that it was 
necessary for them to visit the entire line daily, 
unless they wished to lose what fur had been 
taken over night. These traps had not been set 
any great distance from the settlement, for they 
had found plenty of traces of mink, marten, 
otter, badger and fox in the ravines and creeks 
within a couple of miles of home; and while, 
at one time, they had contemplated going 
further away, the uneasiness of their mother 
influenced them to make a shorter circuit. 

Accordingly they started every other day to 
visit these traps. Sandy had also discovered 
a colony of beaver up a lonely stream, and, as 
he coveted their glossy pelts, he had made sure 
to leave several of his best traps hidden just 
under the surface of the water with the bait, 
scented with castor, above, so that, when one 
of the little animals tried to reach up, it would 
surely step into the open jaws of the trap, and 
be drowned. 



TENDING THEIR TRAPS 


121 


One thing the boys had faithfully promised 
their parents. This was to always keep close 
together when out in the forest, either in search 
of fresh meat or visiting their traps to remove 
the captured fur-bearers. 

Bob was particularly interested in every sort 
of information which he could secure concern¬ 
ing the Indians of this Northwest Territory. 
He knew the chief differences between the 
many tribes, and that, while all the rest were 
in favor of the wily French traders, most of the 
Iroquois or Six Nations inclined toward the 
English. 

But this did not mean that they would be 
friendly toward the settlers beyond Fort Du- 
quesne, later known as Fort Pitt; for already 
were the strong signs of rebellion rife in the 
Colonies; and the Indians began to take the 
side of the loyalists against the Americans. 

Often, while he and Sandy were making the 
rounds of their traps, Bob would relate some¬ 
thing of interest that he had managed to pick 
up; and his brother, though not as deeply con¬ 
cerned as himself, always asked numerous ques¬ 
tions. 

Some days passed after the visit of Blue 
Jacket, and thus far nothing had come about 



122 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


that might excite new alarm. Almost daily 
some scout or courier belonging in the settle¬ 
ment would come in with news; but the reports 
all seemed to point to a possibility of the out¬ 
break being postponed, for a while at least. 
Pontiac had not had sufficient time in which to 
mature his terrible scheme; because it was so 
difficult to get answers from distant tribes, in 
the confederacy of treachery. 

Things were drifting on in this fairly satis¬ 
factory way when there came a sudden break 
in the calm, so far as the Armstrong family was 
concerned. 

As usual, the two boys had been out on their 
line of traps, and were returning home late in 
the afternoon. They had been unusually suc¬ 
cessful, which accounted for their tardiness, 
for as a rule they were home long before this. 

Sandy had succeeded in shooting a deer, and 
bore a bountiful supply of fresh meat on his 
broad shoulders. Bob, on the other hand, stag¬ 
gered under a goodly bunch of pelts, consisting 
of two beaver, a beautiful black fox, three mink, 
and some muskrat skins that were not worth 
anything at the time in the market, but were 
used by the settlers for making warm mitts 
for winter wear, or snug caps calculated to 




TENDING THEIR TRAPS 


123 


keep their ears from freezing when the cold 
winds howled, and the snow fell. 

The boys had just come in sight of their cabin 
when Sandy saw something that caused him to 
call to his brother. 

“ Look, Bob, what do you suppose all those 
people are doing around our home? I can 
count five, six, seven women standing, talking; 
and there’s Mr. Brewster and Mr. Lane coming 
out of the cabin. Oh! I wonder if that fire¬ 
brand has been about again, trying to burn us 
out? ” 

And Bob, looking hastily, was also thrilled 
to see that his brother spoke the truth, in so far 
as the gathering of neighbors was concerned. 
He too became immediately deeply concerned, 
and his boyish face lost every particle of 
color. 

“ No, it couldn’t be that, Sandy,” he said, in 
a voice that trembled with new-born anxiety; 
“ but I fear it may be father has hurt himself 
again. Ever since that tree fell on him, and 
nearly took his life, he has been hardly him¬ 
self. ’ 9 

“ But you must surely be wrong, Bob,” spoke 
up the other, eagerly; “ for see, there is father 
coming out of the door now, and shaking hands 




124 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


with Mr. Lane. If there is any one ill it must 
be our darling mother, because I can see sister 
Kate with the women right now.” 

“ But no, that cannot be either, Sandy,” said 
Bob, as he stared at the group near the cabin. 
‘ ‘ If our mother were ill you do not believe that 
both father and Kate would leave her alone, 
while they gossiped with the neighbors outside 
the doors? It must mean something else! See, 
Kate is dancing about as though she could not 
quite contain herself. Now she looks this way, 
and I believe she sees us.” 

“ Which is quite true,” Sandy observed, still 
trembling from excitement, “ because the little 
witch is running straight toward us as fast as 
her dear feet will carry her. Listen, she is 
calling something too; but for the life of me I 
can’t quite make out what she says.” 

“ Anyhow, Sandy,” Bob said, smilingly, 
u we need not fear that it can be very terrible, 
or Kate would not be looking so gay. See her 
wave her hands to us as she dances along! 
Come, why longer hang back, when by meeting 
her half-way we shall the sooner learn just what 
has happened to bring the neighbors to our 
home.” 

” Just as you say, Bob. I was afraid at first, 



TENDING THEIR TRAPS 


125 


thinking that something had gone wrong with 
our loved ones; but — why, there is mother 
right now, joining the rest at the door. Look, 
they seem to be saluting her, as though there 
might be some cause for congratulations. Bob, 
I no longer fear that trouble has visited us; 
but, if I am shaking, it is with eagerness to 
know what it all means/’ 

Kate had ceased trying to make them under¬ 
stand; but all the time she was rapidly ap¬ 
proaching the heavily laden boy trappers. 

Almost out of breath she came up finally, to 
throw her arms about the neck of one brother, 
and then affectionately embrace the other. 

“ Come, what ails you, Kate! ” demanded 
Bob, when the girl had repeated this demon¬ 
stration twice, as though unable to articulate, 
owing to her excitement and loss of breath 
through running. 

“ Good news! ” she managed to say, beaming 
at them in turn. 

“ Something’s happened then,” cried Sandy; 
“ something good, you say! Bob, can you make 
her stop dancing around like that, and speak! 
I’m feeling like I was in a dream, and just can’t 
for the life of me understand what could hap¬ 
pen out here so far away from everywhere.” 




126 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Bob caught his sister, and, having dropped 
his burden, threw an arm around her. 

“ Now, tell us at once,” he said, in his com¬ 
manding way; “ was it a letter? ” 

“ Yes, yes!” she answered, with a happy 
gasp, and merry eyes that seemed suspiciously 
moist with tears of very joy. 4 4 A letter from 
the lawyer in Richmond, telling father that at 
last, after these years of waiting, the great case 
has been decided, and in his favor. He is to 
come and receive the money of which his wicked 
cousin robbed him ever so long ago. Is it not 
splendid news, brothers? ” 



CHAPTER XII 


THE CRUEL PARTING 

“Oh! Pm so glad — for mother’s sake!” 
exclaimed Bob, his first thought being of that 
beloved, patient little woman, who had stood 
shoulder to shoulder with her husband through 
all the hard times of the past. 

“ Yes, now she can have some of the things 
other women own,” said Sandy, gleefully; 
“ for father will have to go to Richmond, and 
can bring back with him many comforts that we 
never expected to get here.” 

“ If only he does not have to cross the big 
water! ” sighed Kate, proving that there was a 
fly in the ointment, after all, and that this possi¬ 
bility loomed up mountain high even in the 
midst of her joy. 

Crossing the ocean in those days was a tre¬ 
mendous undertaking, with the sailing craft 
subject to all whims of the fickle weather for 
many weeks; and few contemplated such a 
voyage lightly. 

“ But father often said that if this long post- 

127 


128 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


poned case was decided in his favor he would 
only have to go to Richmond to be put in pos¬ 
session of his own! ” remarked Bob. “ So I 
wouldn’t worry about it, Kate, dear. But let 
us go on to the cabin, for I can see mother look¬ 
ing this way, and beckoning.” 

They found a happy group when they reached 
the log building. The neighbors had come to 
rejoice with the Armstrongs over the glorious 
news; for only too well did every housewife 
know the privations that had followed the loss 
of Mr. Armstrong’s little fortune; and how de¬ 
lightful it was to realize that things were now 
about to take a decided turn for the better. 

Others came flocking to the scene, and that 
night was one never to be forgotten. Such 
good news as this seldom came to any of the 
pioneers. As a rule those hardy men had to 
build their own fortunes by daily contact with 
the rough edges of life, clearing first one acre 
of land, and planting it to crops; and then 
slowly adding to their holdings, year by year. 

Mr. Armstrong knew that it was absolutely 
necessary that he proceed east at the very earli¬ 
est day in order to get back before winter had 
settled in earnest over the mountains, since they 
would be utterly impassable once this occurred. 



THE CRUEL PARTING 


129 


He consulted with some of his best friends; 
for since they had been neighbors many months 
now they had come to know each other fully. 

His wife was both happy and oppressed. 
She knew that her little family would be ren¬ 
dered better able to withstand the hardships of 
pioneer life after David had been to the east, 
and returned, bringing the many things so 
needed to make them comfortable; but the 
thought of the separation gave her much pain, 
since the pair were very devoted to each other. 

But it was considerable pleasure to be able to 
make out a long list of things which the good 
man was to secure, after he had come into his 
own. Several pack animals would be needed 
on which to transport all he expected to bring 
to the Ohio. The neighbors, almost to a family, 
thought of various little things they needed; 
and Mr. Armstrong was commissioned to pur¬ 
chase these. 

“ Why,” he laughed, as another day had 
passed, with his list growing to a formidable 
length, as still more of the settlers’ wives came, 
with money and a request that he buy them 
this article or that; 1 1 if this keeps on I’ll surely 
have a regular caravan under my charge, as 
numerous as the one with which we first crossed 



130 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the mountains, and found this beautiful spot 
on the Ohio.” 

“ But, father,” said far-seeing Bob, “ that 
will be all the better, for it has been some time 
since there was a pack train out of Virginia 
headed this way, and I am sure quite a lot of 
people will want to join you. They have been 
hearing stories about this golden west a long 
time now; and we know what that means.” 

“ Yes,” observed the good wife, as she looked 
up into the bronzed face of the pioneer; “ and 
if the company is large, the better I shall be 
pleased, David, because it will mean that you 
are safe. Bring them along, all who yearn to 
come hither. We will stand by them — the men 
to help build cabins before the winter sets in; 
the women to assist in fitting their homes up, 
so as to give the newcomers a start. There is 
room in plenty here in this glorious country, 
where people can really breathe without paying 
taxes to a king three thousand miles away.” 

That evening the neighbors flocked to the 
Armstrong cabin to spend a few hours with 
those for whom they had come to feel so much 
respect and affection. If some of them secretly 
envied the Armstrongs their great good for¬ 
tune, they managed to conceal the fact, for 



THE CRUEL PARTING 


131 


every one seemed bubbling over with happi¬ 
ness. 

On the morrow the start was to be made. All 
preparations had been completed looking for¬ 
ward to the event. It happened, fortunately, 
that several parties were expecting to leave for 
the fields of Virginia about this time; and, 
since greater safety would follow if they went 
together, they had managed to set upon this 
day, close upon the verge of fall, for a start. 

Often during the evening Bob caught his 
father’s eyes fastened upon himself and Sandy. 
He knew well what thoughts must be passing 
through the mind of the pioneer. And again 
and again did Bob promise himself that he 
would strive to do everything in his power to 
fill that father’s place while the head of the 
family was absent. 

There was really little sleep under that hum¬ 
ble roof that night. First, the excitement attach¬ 
ing to the visit of so many neighbors broke into 
the routine of their daily life. Then, after these 
good friends had departed, it was found that a 
number of things had been neglected that were 
absolutely necessary for the comfort o,f the 
traveller. 

The party anticipated making an early start 



132 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


in the morning, so none of these could be post¬ 
poned. Besides, it was only natural that every 
member of the family should be worked up to 
a high degree of nervous anxiety, and lie awake 
long after they had sought their cots, thinking 
of a thousand and one matters. 

Early indeed were they astir. Breakfast was 
prepared as usual; but, on this morning, no 
one had much heart for merriment. Mrs. Arm¬ 
strong indeed kept a smile on her face, but it 
was forced simply to encourage her husband; 
since she knew only too well how he must feel 
at the idea of thus separating himself from all 
he held dear on earth. 

Bob, Sandy and Kate tried their best to ap¬ 
pear natural, but it was indeed hard work. 
Often Kate would make some excuse for dart¬ 
ing out of the room, and, when she came back 
a little later, there was always a suspicious red¬ 
ness about her eyes that told plainly how she 
had indulged in a cry to ease the numb pain 
in her girlish heart. And even fun-loving 
Sandy dared not take her to task, for he was 
on the verge of a breakdown himself. 

Mr. Armstrong, seeing how his wife exerted 
herself to sustain him, and ashamed to let her 
bear the whole burden, made a great effort, and 



THE CRUEL PARTING 


133 


mastered his feelings. He took Bob aside as 
they left the table, and with a hand on the 
shoulder of his oldest boy said: 

“ Be very careful, son, while I am away. 
Your mother will have no one but you to stand 
by her, for Sandy, though a well-meaning lad, 
is hardly to be depended on in times of stress. 
Be vigilant and watchful. Remember that we 
have to deal with a cunning and merciless foe, 
and, should there be an attack on the settlement, 
see to it that your mother is quickly taken inside 
the stockade. I depend much on you, Robert; 
and, if it were not so, nothing could induce me 
to leave home with these ugly rumors of trouble 
floating to our ears. You promise me to do 
everything a man could for your sister’s and 
your mother’s well-being? ” 

And Bob, looking firmly into the face of his 
father, managed to say in reply: 

“ I promise to try and fill your place, father, 
as best I may. But oh! we will count the days 
till your return. If Pat O’Mara comes in while 
you are away, perhaps he may agree to stay 
with us. Try and think all is going well. Sandy 
and I have many plans ahead; but we will stick 
as close to our home as may be. Do not fear 
for us. And, just to think, how happy we will 



134 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


all be when we see yon come home again, bring¬ 
ing so many things to make our dearest mother 
happy . 7 ’ 

That was all. These two understood one an¬ 
other, so that many words were not necessary. 
Bob had always been a serious lad, and right 
well did his father know that in trusting him 
he was not putting his faith in jeopardy. 

Apparently the entire settlement had gath¬ 
ered to witness the departure, as well as wish 
the travellers Godspeed on their way. 

Even little Kate brightened up with all this 
clamor around her, and smiled; though, after 
the parting had taken place, she would doubt¬ 
less sob her heart out on her mother’s breast. 

Dogs barked, men called, horses neighed, and 
women chattered. It had indeed been a long 
time since the new settlement on the river had 
witnessed such excitement. Each of the men 
had a horse upon which he expected to make 
the long mountain trip. Two of them did not 
intend to return again to the Ohio; but the 
third man had business at the coast, and was 
taking advantage of this favorable opportunity 
to make the double trip in good company. 

And then, finally, came the moment when, for 
the last time, David Armstrong took his wife 



THE CRUEL PARTING 


135 


and children into his strong arms, to give them 
a hug and a farewell kiss. 

Tears fell in showers from the blue eyes of 
Kate; and even many of the women could not 
refrain from weeping, affected by the scene; 
but, through it all, gentle Mrs. Armstrong main¬ 
tained her sweet and encouraging smile, and 
she looked into the troubled face of her hus¬ 
band, as she put him from her, with the same 
brave expression. 

But Bob knew only too well how hard it was 
for her to keep up, and that, once she could be 
free from all those curious eyes, the wells of her 
sorely-stricken heart would burst out in silent 
weeping. But no mortal eyes would witness 
her sorrow, nor would any of her dear ones be 
discouraged by seeing her give way. 

Now the four men had mounted. Tied to 
their saddles were numerous packages contain¬ 
ing things intended for their comfort on the 
long and arduous trip. Each carried a blanket 
wrapped in a roll, and, of course, a gun, with 
plenty of powder in the horn, as well as bullets 
in the pouch that hung suspended from their 
shoulders, as was the custom. 

One last look at his little family, and then, as 
the word was given, David Armstrong dug his 



136 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

heels into the sides of his horse, to follow after 
his comrades of the trail. 

A cheer burst forth from the assembled set¬ 
tlers. Then some one started a hymn, one of 
those old-time tunes which had ever been a 
source of comfort to the pioneer families when 
peril threatened. Every person, old and young, 
chimed in; and, high above all the rest, the 
sweet voice of Mary Armstrong was carried to 
the ears of the departing adventurers. 

Once Mr. Armstrong turmed in the saddle. 
This was just before a twist in the trail would 
hide him from the view of those whom he had 
left behind. Raising his hat he waved it in the 
air once, twice, thrice. Then the trees swal¬ 
lowed the figures of horse and rider from view. 
He was gone! 

Bob heaved a long sigh, but valiantly re¬ 
pressed the tears that tried to dim his sight. 
He felt that he must more than ever show him¬ 
self a man, now that his father depended so on 
him to look after his little flock during his ab¬ 
sence ; and it was surely not manly to cry. 

Sandy had no such compunctions, however, 
though he managed to hide his own emotion in 
trying to comfort poor little Kate. 

The bitterness would soon wear away with 



THE CRUEL PARTING 


137 


these younger members of the family, for they 
had the abounding spirits of youth and good 
health to carry them through; but many times 
would that good wife sit by herself, engaged in 
her duties, and tears dim her eyes as her 
thoughts went out to the absent husband and 
father. 

Well did she know the nature of the deadly 
perils that beset that path back to the fertile 
fields of Virginia; how wild beasts lurked in 
thicket and forest, ready to spring upon unsus¬ 
pecting travellers; and still more savage In¬ 
dians laid ambuscades and traps, in which to 
catch their hated paleface foes. 

In a day or two things had settled down again 
at the Armstrong cabin. Bob and Sandy took 
up their‘duties manfully. The mother might 
well feel proud of having two such boys upon 
whom to lean in her necessity. They were de¬ 
termined to keep the family larder plentifully 
supplied with fresh meat; and at the same time 
increase the store of pelts that sooner or later 
would prove so fine a harvest, when they could 
get them to a market. 





CHAPTER XIII 


THE GRAND HUNT 

With a winter approaching, the severity of 
which none of them could more than guess at, 
it was the most natural thing in the world for 
the Ohio river settlers to wish to lay in a goodly 
stock of dried venison and buffalo meat. 

From the friendly Indians they had learned 
just how this “ pemmican ” was prepared; 
and, while it could not be compared to fresh 
meat, still, to tide over a protracted season, 
when possibly game could not be had, it prom¬ 
ised to prove valuable indeed. 

Already in every cabin could be seen long 
strips hanging from the rafters of the living- 
room, or drying before the tire when rainy 
weather prevented its being cured in the hot 
sunshine. 

Still, the meagre quantity in hand was a 
source of considerable anxiety to the serious- 
minded men of the settlement. Should the In¬ 
dians come in sufficient force to harass them to 

any great extent, their hunting might b$ 

138 


THE GRAND HUNT 


139 


stopped. Hence, only a day or two after the 
departure of Mr. Armstrong and his three com¬ 
panions, a general hunt was proposed. 

Of course it was not intended that all the de¬ 
fenders of the settlement should be away at the 
same time. They were formed into two com¬ 
panies, one of which would be out for a couple 
of days; and, upon reaching home laden with 
spoils, the second detachment might try their 
luck. 

In this round-up it was hoped to secure so 
large a supply of game that the housewives 
would be able to put away all the pemmican they 
wanted. 

Of course Bob and Sandy were heart and 

soul in the proposed grand hunt. They had al- 

* 

ready brought in enough meat to enable Kate 
and the mother to store away a vast quantity 
for winter use; but, being good providers, the 
boys hardly knew when to stop. Besides, both 
of them loved the chase, since the spirit of the 
true sportsman flowed with the blood through 
their veins. 

And so it chanced that they accompanied the 
second party that went forth. It was policy 
for these hunters to seek new fields for their 
raid on the storehouse of Nature, since their 



140 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


comrades must have sadly depleted the number 
of deer and buffaloes toward the east. Accord¬ 
ingly they had turned in the direction of the 
setting sun. 

The Armstrong boys had possibly done more 

tramping within ten miles of the settlement 

than any other white person. Most of their 

time had been spent in the forest, with gun or 

trap in hand. Thus they knew the best places 

for game, and were able to post the balance of 
\ 

their party when they sallied forth that day. 

As was always their custom, the boys had 
kissed both their mother and sister good-bye 
when starting forth on the hunt, little suspect¬ 
ing what strange vicissitudes of fortune were 
fated to come upon them ere they four met 
again. 

Of course it was not the intention of Bob 
and Sandy to remain away from their humble 
cabin home over night. Had they dreamed of 
so doing they would have seen to it that the 
defenceless ones were safely lodged at the 
blockhouse within the strong stockade in the 
centre of the settlement; just as Bob had prom¬ 
ised his father should be done in case of an 
Indian attack. 

A scout had come in the day before, bringing 



THE GRAND HUNT 


141 


news that things seemed to be going on about 
as before. The Indians were indulging in the 
war dance it was true, and nightly the harsh 
sound of the war drum might be heard pealing 
through forest and over plain; but they seemed 
to be holding back for some final word from that 
mighty plotter and enemy of the whites, the 
war-chief of the Great Lakes, Pontiac. 

As this would be really the last big hunt, and 
danger did not seem to be imminent, the boys 
had no serious fears as they went forth. It 
gave them so much pleasure to know that they 
were filling the shoes of the absent father, and 
providing food for the winter that was drawing 
nearer every passing day, that they departed 
in high spirits, throwing back kisses to the two 
who stood at the door of the cabin, watching 
their going. 

By noon they were miles away from the cabin 
in the clearing, and intent on the business that 
had tempted them to the forest. The various 
members of the party had arranged a central 
rendezvous where they were expected to meet 
after they had secured their supply of fresh 
meat. There were eight in all, making just four 
couples, for it was deemed wise that they should 
not separate entirely. 



142 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


The vast woods that surrounded them on all 
sides might hide other living things besides the 
four-footed game which they expected to sur¬ 
prise and secure. For unknown centuries had 
the red men followed the tortuous buffalo trails 
in their annual hunts, and frequent spells of 
warfare between rival tribes. They looked upon 
the invasion of the palefaces with increasing 
concern, as meaning the gradual absorption of 
this fair country; and, as time rolled on, their 
efforts to stem the tide of emigration by mas¬ 
sacre and the torch would become more frantic. 

At noon the boys had not succeeded in secur¬ 
ing their quota of game. They had purposely 
•given their companions the most desirable loca¬ 
tions, feeling certain that in good season they 
would be able to accomplish all they wished, 
for Sandy had ever been a lucky hunter. 

“ Come,” said Bob, as they sat side by side 
on a log to enjoy the “ snack 99 Kate had put 
up for each of her brothers; “ we must do bet¬ 
ter than this, Sandy, unless we want to have 
them laugh at us. From now on we ought to 
stir ourselves, and get either a fat deer or a 
buffalo . 9 9 

“ I hope it is a cow then, and not a tough old 
bull,” remarked Sandy, who was munching on 




THE GRAND HUNT 


143 


his hoe cake and cold turkey, the last of a fine 
gobbler his ready musket had fetched down 
some days back. 

“ Well, that depends pretty much on you,” 
laughed Bob. ‘ 4 If you have any choice be sure 
to pick out a yearling, and leave the old chaps 
alone.” 

“ Yes,” grumbled the other, shaking his head 
as he spoke; “ that’s all very nice, Bob; but 
you know that sometimes the old bull refuses to 
be let alone.” 

“ Now you’re thinking of that time you were 
treed by a buffalo you had wounded, and kept 
up in the branches for hours. Only for that 
bright thought that came to you, and which led 
you to fish for your gun with some yarn secured 
from unravelling your stocking, you might have 
stayed there all night.” 

“ But I didn’t, you remember, Bob!” 
grinned Sandy, looking up archly. “ The 
doubled yarn held first-rate, and brought me my 
gun. After that it was easy to send a bullet 
back of the bull’s shoulder; and I even had the 
pleasure of toting some of his carcass home; 
but mother said it was only good for soup, it 
was so tough.” 

“ Well,” remarked Bob, rising to his feet, 



144 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


and picking up his gun, “I’m ready to make a 
fresh start, if you say so. And here’s hoping 
that we have better luck than the morning 
brought us.” 

“ I wonder how far he is on his way now? ” 
sighed Sandy. 

They had not been speaking of Mr. Arm¬ 
strong at all; but Bob could understand readily 
enough whom his brother meant, for was not 
that beloved father in their minds pretty much 
all the time? 

“ Oh! he can hardly be a great way off,” 
Bob made answer. “ You know how slow they 
must travel when crossing the mountains. Still, 
they have no women and children along to hold 
them back. However, weeks must pass before 
we can hope to see him again. Why, it will be 
almost in the winter I fear, though mother re¬ 
fuses to say as much.” 

Sandy gulped something down as he strode 
after his brother. He could not control his 
feelings as well as the stronger Bob, and the 
thought of that father perhaps never coming 
home again always unmanned him. 

Presently, however, in the excitement of the 
hunt, he managed to forget his anxieties; for 
Sandy dearly loved the chase, and everything 



THE GRAND HUNT 


145 


connected with the great forest appealed to his 
nature. 

An hour later they chanced upon the track of 
a small herd of buffaloes. 

“ It is fresh, too,” declared Sandy, after he 
had dropped down on hands and knees to exam¬ 
ine the marks of split hoofs. 

“ Then here is our meat, if we are lucky 
enough to get within shooting distance,” de¬ 
clared Bob, looking carefully to the priming of 
his flintlock musket, as was the universal habit 
with the pioneers of the days of Boone, since a 
lack of powder at that point, when the hammer 
came down, and sparks flew into the pan, would 
cause a misfire, and that generally meant 
trouble. 

Carefully the brothers crept along, first one 
and then the other taking the lead, in order not 
to miss the tracks of the game. They could only 
hope that the buffalo might have stopped near 
by, to lie down during the heat of the day, or 
lick the salt at one of the known spots fre¬ 
quented by such animals. 

“ Hist! ” whispered Sandy, presently, as he 
slowly allowed his body to sink down until he 
was hidden behind the brush that acted as a 
screen beyond. 



146 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


No words were permissible under such, con¬ 
ditions. The wary game was too close by for 
talking, even in whispers. Sandy pointed, and 
made a few gestures that his companion must 
have readily understood, for he immediately 
nodded. They had hunted so often in company 
that they had a regular code of signals for occa¬ 
sions like this, to take the place of verbal com¬ 
munications. 

Thus Bob understood that the buffaloes were 
within easy gunshot, that several of them were 
even then in sight, and appeared to be feeding; 
and the opportunity for a double shot excellent. 

Together they crept forward through the 
brush, inch by inch. Arrived at the further 
side they found that they could see splendidly. 
Bob bent his head close, to Sandy’s ear, and 
whispered softly: 

“ You take the mother; leave me the half- 
grown baby! ’ 9 

A minute later the reports boomed out, start¬ 
ing several other animals up from the long grass 
of the glade where they had been lying. The 
young pioneers were gratified to see both buf¬ 
faloes fall as though mortally wounded; for the 
boys were good shots, and seldom missed bring¬ 
ing down their quarry. 



THE GRAND HUNT 


147 


Still they knew better than to dash recklessly 
out in the open, so long as that grand old bull 
with the wicked-looking black horns ran bellow¬ 
ing about, snorting in his mad desire to do bat¬ 
tle with the unseen foe that had brought con¬ 
fusion into his family. 

Presently he, too, galloped after the other 
buffaloes. Then the boys dared stand up, and 
proceeded to reload their guns; after which they 
walked over to their game, with the intention 
of securing all they could carry of the choice 
portions. 

An hour later they were headed for the spot 
agreed on as a general meeting-place for the 
various couples engaged in the hunt. Each of 
them was loaded down with meat, enclosed in 
the hides of the animals that had fallen to their 
guns. 

“ I hope the others have come in,” re¬ 
marked Bob as they drew near the spring that 
bubbled out from under the roots of a giant oak, 
and, being located on a little rise, was a prom¬ 
inent object for some distance around. “ We 
ought to be starting homeward soon, you 
know . 1 ’ 

“ Yes,” replied Sandy, “ this load is going 
to fret my shoulders some, I fear, before I get 



148 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


rid of it. But it seems to me we ought to sight 
the oak spring about now, Bob! ” 

“ And there it is,” remarked his brother, as 
they suddenly came out of the dense brush into 
more open ground. 

“Why they're all back but us, it seems,” 
remarked Sandy. “ Four, six why, Bob, 
look, there’s another one along now, seven, I 
count! Perhaps a messenger from the settle¬ 
ment! I hope it doesn’t mean bad news. See, 
they’re beckoning to us! Oh! hurry, Bob, 
hurry! What if it should be for us — what 
if—” 

“ There, that will do, Sandy; don’t be silly 
enough to think up every awful happening be¬ 
fore you know; ” but, while Bob spoke thus 
bravely, his own heart was throbbing much 
faster than usual as he hastened his footsteps, 
and thus approached the spot where the seven 
men awaited them. 

He noted the furtive looks on their faces, and 
understood that it was sympathy for himself 
and Sandy that caused the lowered eyes, the 
clinched hands, and the tightly compressed 
teeth. 

44 What brings you out here, Mr. Harkness? ” 
Bob asked, trying to steady his voice, though 



THE GRAND HUNT 


149 


with poor success. “ Surely no one is sick at 
home — our mother, Kate! ’ ’ 

Sandy gave a groan as he saw the settler nod 
his head in the affirmative when their sister’s 
name was mentioned. 

“ Yes, Bob,” Mr. Harkness said, with an in¬ 
take of his breath; “ it is Kate! Steady now, 
my poor boys, and be brave! She has been 
carried off by a prowling band of Indians! ’ ’ 



CHAPTER XIV 


BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 

“ Oh! it must be a terrible mistake; you 
can’t mean it, Mr. Harkness! ’ ’ cried Sandy, 
white of face, and trembling like a leaf. 

Bob, however, understood. He knew the set¬ 
tler would never have sought them out simply 
to carry an idle rumor. And probably, in that 
moment of acute pain, the young pioneer once 
again saw those beady black eyes of the Seneca 
chief, Black Beaver, as they fastened greedily 
upon the pretty face of little Kate. He, too, 
was thrilled with horror when he heard those 
terrible words; but, fortunately, he could con¬ 
trol himself much better than his younger 
brother. 

“ Tell us, Mr. Harkness; is Kate lost; and 
do they only believe she has been carried off, 
or is it proved? ” he asked, his voice hoarse 
with suffering. 

u I am afraid it is but too true, my lad,” re¬ 
plied the settler, as he laid his hand on the 
shoulder of the Armstrong boy. 

160 


BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


151 


“ Did any one see it done? ” continued Bob, 
between his set teeth; for he could not believe 
that any neighbor would have stood idly by, 
and witnessed such an abduction, without doing 
everything in his power to thwart the evil de¬ 
signs of the prowling red men. 

“ No. Kate went to the spring for water. 
Her mother thought once she heard a little cry, 
and was worried; but, stepping out of doors, 
she looked that way, and believed she saw 
Kate’s shawl moving among the trees, as 
though she were stooping down to pick some 
late wild flower. Reassured, she returned to 
her work indoors. An hour passed. Then, sud¬ 
denly she remembered the circumstance and, 
alarmed, she hurried to the spring.” 

“ And- Kate had disappeared? ” exclaimed 
Bob, in dismay. 

“ Yes,” replied the man. “ Your mother 
called aloud again and again, her alarm in¬ 
creasing each moment as no answer came. 
Wildly she ran across to the cabin of Mr. 
Brewster, which was the nearest of all the 
neighbors. He happened to be at home, and, 
seizing his gun, immediately hurried to aid 
her, meanwhile sending his boy to sound the 
alarm.” 




152 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Yes, yes, and when they arrived what did 
they learn? ” demanded Sandy. 

4 1 They had hardly reached the cabin when 
who should appear from the woods but your old 
friend, Pat O’Mara, returned unexpectedly 
from his last scout .’ 1 

Both Bob and his brother gave utterance to 
a cry of joy when the settler uttered these 
words. 

“ How fortunate we are to have him with us 
now! 99 exclaimed Bob. 

“ So we all thought,” went on Mr. Harkness. 
“ When he had learned what was the trouble, 
O’Mara immediately made us all keep back un¬ 
til he could closely examine the vicinity of the 
spring. ’ ’ 

“ He was looking for the tracks of the kid¬ 
nappers,” remarked one of the hunters. 

“ Truly, it was a fortunate thing that so 
clever a trailer should have come into the set¬ 
tlement just when his services were so des¬ 
perately needed,” said another, who knew the 
Irish trapper’s worth. 

“ O’Mara quickly found the imprint of many 
moccasins,” resumed the settler. “ He could 
tell just how Kate had been suddenly seized by 
an Indian, who crept up behind while she was 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


153 


stooping beside the spring. Her bucket was 
found in the bushes, just where the cunning 
rascals had hidden it, so as to make her mother 
think she had wandered away in search of but¬ 
terflies, or to visit some favorite nook where 
she might be watching a late brood of young 
quail.’ ’ 

4 ‘ But you said that, after the cry, our mother 
saw Kate moving about? ” Bob ventured to 
remark, in puzzled tones. 

“ That was only another of the crafty 
schemes of the redskins, ” replied Mr. Hark- 
ness. “ O’Mara showed us how one of her cap- 
tors must have taken her shawl, and, throwing 
it over his head, showed just enough of himself 
to deceive the mother. They were evidently 
afraid lest her one cry might have been heard/’ 

“ Please finish/’ burst out the fretting 
•Sandy; “ for I am just wild to rush away home, 
so as to take up the trail. Is Pat O’Mara wait¬ 
ing for us to come in, so that we may all start 
out together? ” 

“ Not so,” came the quick response. “ As 
soon as he found out positively what had come 
to pass, the trapper vowed he would himself 
pursue the fleeing Indians, and bring back the 
child of his friend, David Armstrong.” 



154 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ God bless him! ’’ murmured Bob, strangely 
moved by this evidence of the woodranger’s de¬ 
votion. 

“ Tired as he was with half a day’s tramp,” 
the settler went on, “ and hardly waiting to re¬ 
plenish his stock of powder and ball, as well as 
to secure an extra flint and steel for bis tinder 
bag, Pat O’Mara rushed away, following the 
trail. ’’ 

“ Alone! ” gasped Sandy. 

“ It could not be otherwise,” replied the 
other, sadly. “ Here were eight of the de¬ 
fenders of the settlement away on a hunt. One 
man must be sent out to carry you the terrible 
news, as well as urge a hasty return. Since we 
thus knew that hostiles were apparently on the 
warpath, we dared not weaken our fighting 
force further, much as we felt for your good 
mother.” 

“ Then let us hasten home without any 
further delay,” said Bob, firmly, while the 
light of a great resolution shone in his brave 
eyes. “ Take courage, Sandy; all is not lost! 
We can follow the wicked thieves; and already 
our friend Pat O’Mara is hot on the trail! How 
many of the Indians were there, did he say, Mr. 
Harkness! ” 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


155 


“ I think four in all, counting the one who 
seized your sister,” came the reply. 

The eyes of the two boys sought each other’s 
face; it was as though the same thought had 
instantly flashed into both minds. 

“ The young Seneca chief, Black Beaver! ” 
exclaimed Sandy. 

“ He had three companions with him,” Bob 
went on; “ and, instead of continuing on to his 
far distant village, which he declared was away 
up on the shore of the Great Lakes, the treach¬ 
erous dog has hovered about the settlement 
ever since that day, waiting for a favorable 
chance to come when he could steal our little 
sister away. That time came when he saw us 
depart with the rest on this big hunt! ” 

It was quickly arranged that Bob and Sandy 
should hasten on ahead in the company of the 
settler. Some of the others promised to bring in 
their share of the fresh buffalo meat. 

Forgotten was their fatigue. Love for the 
sweet little sister, who had been a ray of sun¬ 
light in that frontier cabin, urged the boys on, 
so that they put the hardy settler to his best 
efforts to keep abreast of them. 

And, before the afternoon was far spent, they 
drew near the cabin in the big clearing, where 



156 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the resolute arms of David Armstrong and his 
two sons liad built so comfortable a home. 

It was now a scene of tremendous commotion. 
Men and women could be seen moving around, 
looking toward the woods, and shielding their 
eyes from the fierce sun’s rays, while they 
watched for the coming of the eager brothers of 
the little maid who had been so strangely ab¬ 
ducted by a savage and treacherous enemy. 

Bob remembered the other occasion when, on 
arriving home, they had found neighbors gath¬ 
ered about their cabin; but how different the 
conditions were! On that day it had been to 
rejoice with the Armstrongs that the settlers 
and their wives had gathered; now it was to 
mourn, to comfort, to advise. 

Mrs. Armstrong was prostrated by the dread¬ 
ful calamity that had befallen her; for, to have 
her sweet child thus taken away, never again 
perhaps to be folded in her motherly arms, 
was a blow that caused her heart to sink with 
dread. 

It seemed all the worse because the father was 
away, heading toward the rising sun, and him¬ 
self exposed to constant danger from the foes 
that lurked in the dark recesses of the forest. 

But, when her two brave boys had taken her 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


157 


in their embrace, and assured her that they 
would never rest until Kate were brought back, 
the poor mother took fresh courage. She knew 
that there was still a hope, faint though it 
might be. 

The boys were filled with zeal. They knew 
that an expedition lay before them such as must 
dwarf all others in which they had engaged. 
Even experienced forest rangers might well 
pause before attempting to pierce that hostile 
country, where not a friendly white might be 
met, those they were apt to run across being 
the trouble-making French trappers and 
traders, who had come down from Canada in 
the hope and expectation of arousing the com¬ 
bined tribes against the English-speaking set¬ 
tlers, so that the entire country might be re¬ 
served for themselves, from the Great Lakes 
down to the town on the Gulf, near the mouth 
of the Mississippi River. 

Many hands assisted them in making speedy 
preparations, for every one was deeply in¬ 
terested in their mission. Few expected to 
ever see the brave brothers again, although all 
such gloomy beliefs were kept in the back¬ 
ground, so that they might not add to the woes 
of the poor mother. 



158 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


This one brought a supply of bullets; an¬ 
other filled the capacious horns with the neces¬ 
sary powder, without which the adventurers 
would be next to helpless, once they were far 
away from the outposts of civilization. Still 
a third looked after a stock of pemmican, 
which was to sustain them as they pushed 
ever onward into the unexplored depths 
of that vast wilderness, teeming with dan¬ 
gers. 

Sandy could think of nothing, he was so eager 
to be on the move; but Bob, besides comforting 
his mother, made sure that they had plenty of 
tinder; that an extra pair of moccasins was 
fastened to each belt, since they knew not when 
those they wore might give way under the long 
tramp; and also that both knives were in a con¬ 
dition of sharpness to give a good account of 
themselves. 

All these things were done in a comparatively 
short time. The sun was still two hours high 
when they announced themselves as ready to 
start on their perilous journey into the un¬ 
known. 

Mr. Brewster had assured them that their 
mother should be taken into his family, and 
guarded well during their absence. This kind- 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


159 


ness gave Bob new courage, for be felt that he 
could put out of his mind all anxieties concern¬ 
ing their home, and devote himself entirely to 
the rescue of Kate. 

Several of the men announced that they in¬ 
tended accompanying the young pioneers a 
short distance on their way, to give them en¬ 
couragement and a good send-off. Nor were 
the two lads averse to such a proceeding, as it 
served to soften the painful parting with their 
mother. 

The trail was taken up at the spring. No 
particular effort had been made by the Indians 
to hide their tracks, and it was little trouble for 
such keen-eyed trackers as Bob and Sandy to 
follow the plain marks. 

The dusky raiders had been careful, appar¬ 
ently, to avoid being seen by any of the settlers 
as they hurried away, after securing the white 
girl. Since no trace of Kate’s little moccasins 
could be found, Bob knew that she must have 
been carried. 

More than once he stooped low to examine 
the imprint in the clay of the leading Indian’s 
elkskin footwear. It was his purpose to know 
any peculiarity that attached to those mocca¬ 
sins, so that he might recognize them again at 



160 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


any future time among a dozen similar 
tracks. 

A circuit was made so as to pass fully around 
and below the settlement. Then gradually the 
trail began to near the border of the great river. 
Bob knew what this signified. Of course the 
Iroquois must have had a canoe hidden some¬ 
where, in which they had crossed the stream. 

One of the men was immediately sent back to 
secure such a boat, and hasten down the stream, 
so that it might be available should the boys 
seek to pass over to the opposite shore. Half 
an hour later the little company stood on the 
bank, waiting for the canoe to reach them, 
having signalled to the paddler as agreed 
upon. 

Plain marks could be seen where a canoe had 
been carried from the bushes and launched, 
afterward being entered by the red men. There 
was something more awaiting them here on the 
bank of the beautiful river. A stick held a 
scrap of paper, on which were a few lines of 
crabbed writing. It was a message from Pat 
O’Mara; and, though the Irish trapper talked 
rather uncouthly, he could at least frame his 
thoughts in fairly decent English. 

This then was what he had written: 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


161 


“ Indians crossed river here in canoe. Will 
follow, and, when find where landed, leave piece 
of red cloth in stick. Look for it close to waters 
edge.” 

That was all, but it signified much to the 
eager boys, who were only waiting for the com¬ 
ing of the dugout to themselves push across the 
river. Trust to their keen eyes to discover that 
tiny bit of flaming cloth! 

“ But where could he have found a boat? ” 
asked Sandy, looking surprised, as this puzzle 
presented itself before him. 

Bob shook his head. He knew the daring 
nature of O’Mara too well to believe that the 
other would halt in his pursuit simply because 
he wanted a canoe. 

“ A log upon which he could fasten his gun 
and powder-horn would be enough for him,” he 
declared, positively. 11 This he would push 
ahead as he battled with the current of the 
river. Landing somewhere below, he could 
easily hasten up the shore, looking for signs. 
And long before now, Sandy, he is, let us hope, 
following on the heels of those treacherous 
wolves.” 

“ Here is the canoe, Bob,” said Sandy, draw- 



162 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

ing a long breath of relief; for he had fretted 
at the delay, counting the minutes while the 
settler paddled down to where they stood wait¬ 
ing. 

Quickly they jumped aboard. The canoe was 
to be hidden on the other shore, so as to afford 
them a means for recrossing the stream when 
they returned from the chase. And how sin¬ 
cerely both those devoted brothers hoped that, 
when this time arrived, be it sooner or later, 
Kate would be in their company again. 

A handshake all around followed, with words 
of good cheer from those who were compelled 
to remain behind, despite their desire to be with 
the brave boys. Then the canoe was pushed 
out upon the waters of the Ohio, and the pad¬ 
dles sent it flashing over in the direction of the 
opposite shore, where unknown perils must 
await the bold adventurers. 

“ Keep your eyes on the watch for any sign 
of a red signal! ” Bob kept saying, as they be¬ 
gan to draw near the northern shore. 

Sandy presently gave a cry of delight. 

“ I see it, Bob! ” he exclaimed. “ Just be¬ 
low us, there, where that willow hangs over the 
water. Pat O’Mara has been there, and found 
where they landed. Now we can take up the 



BLACK BEAVER STRIKES 


163 


trail, and follow the stealers of our little sister, 
even if the hunt takes us to the big waters of 
the north. For never will we return while she 
remains a prisoner of the red men! ” 



CHAPTER XV 


ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 

“ Yes, you are right, Sandy/’ said Bob, as 
he, too, discovered the small flaming signal, evi¬ 
dently a part of a large red kerchief he remem¬ 
bered the jovial Irish trapper possessed, and 
which he was not averse to sacrificing in an 
emergency. 

They headed the boat straight for the willow 
that hung over the edge of the water, and a 
minute later its keel grated on the pebbly beach. 
Both boys instantly jumped ashore, and ha¬ 
stened to reach the signal; for they saw that 
again had the woodsman left a note in a splin¬ 
tered stick, as though desirous of giving those 
he knew would surely follow after him such 
information as he himself had obtained. 

* ‘ The four Senecas at cabin — Black Beaver, 
young chief — lodges on shore of Great Lake, 
far to north, and west of big falls. I push on. 
tWe may meet later. Hope! Remember our 
signal calls! ” 


164 


ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 165 


Every word was to the point, and in that brief 
communication the trapper had given them 
much news. First and most important of all 
he had confirmed the suspicion both boys had 
entertained as to its being Black Beaver who 
had done this cruel and treacherous deed. Then 
he had told them where the village was located 
to which the Seneca belonged, which information 
might yet prove of great value to them in case 
they were unfortunate enough to lose the trail, 
and have to push on at a hazard. They had 
heard of the mighty cataract, Niagara, that lay 
between two of the lakes, and which was un¬ 
doubtedly meant. 

What he wrote about the signals they also 
understood to signify that if, at any time, they 
heard the-call of a bird, thrice repeated, it would 
be his method of communicating the fact that 
he was near by. Many times had O’Mara 
amused and interested the Armstrong boys with 
his clever imitations of various feathered and 
furred inhabitants of the wilderness; and even 
taught them to copy the same, so that they could 
read a message in such sounds. 

“ We must first of all conceal the dugout,” 
said Bob, when his brother began to exhibit an 
eagerness to be off. 



166 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


4 4 Then let us not waste another minute, 
Bob! ” cried Sandy, as he laid hold on the bow 
of the craft, prepared to do his share toward 
carrying it into the adjacent bushes, where it 
might remain hidden until such time as they 
again wanted to cross the river. 

This duty done, Bob was ready to take up the 
trail. 

“ See how thoughtful O’Mara has been,” he 
remarked, immediately. 

“ I see what you mean,” replied Sandy, 
quickly. “ He has made heavy tracks as he 
followed after the Indians, so that we might 
have an easier task. That ought to help us 
greatly, Bob, don’t you think? ” 

“ Surely,” the older boy remarked, as he led 
the way into the thickest of the neighboring 
woods. 

“ But you look unhappy,” continued Sandy, 
who was quick to read the face of his brother. 
“ What worries you now, Bob? Are you posi¬ 
tive that Kate is with these Indians? Once or 
twice a horrible fear has forced itself into my 
brain that thev mav have slain her, and hidden 
her body away somewhere.” 

“ No, no, do not think that! ” cried Bob, in¬ 
stantly, though he could not repress the shudder 



ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 167 


that his brother’s gloomy words brought upon 
him. “ I know she is alive, or was when the 
Indians stepped ashore, for I believe I saw the 
faint impression of her little moccasin in the 
earth, almost hidden by the tread of a brave.” 

“ Then what makes you frown and look so 
black? ” demanded Sandy. 

“ You forget that the day is almost done,” 
the other remarked, significantly. 

“ To be sure it is,” replied Sandy, casting a 
glance aloft to where glimpses of the sky could 
be seen through the dense branches of the tall 
forest trees. 

“ And that when night comes we shall no 
longer be able to follow the trail, while those 
we hunt can keep right on, hour after hour, put¬ 
ting mile.after mile between us. That is what 
makes me bitter,” Bob said, even though he did 
not pause in his onward movement. 

“ But what is to hinder our securing torches, 
and continuing on as long as we can put one 
foot before the other? ” demanded his brother. 

“ An excellent idea, and we must try it,” de¬ 
clared Bob, nodding his head as if pleased over 
this bright thought. “ In that way we may at 
least cut down some of their long lead, which 
will count sooner or later in our favor.” 




168 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Yes,” continued the other lad, “ and if, by 
chance, Pat 0 ’Mara should glimpse our moving 
torch, be sure he will hasten to join us. I will 
keep an eye out from now on, so as to pick up 
enough fat pine wood to serve us for torches, 
once it grows too dark for you to see the trail 
plainly.” 

Bob hastened as well as he was able, and, for 
another hour, they kept moving on, steadily 
heading into the deeper forest, where perhaps 
the foot of a white man had never before been 
set. 

Then came the darkness which they dreaded. 
By slow degrees Bob was finding his task more 
and more difficult. Time was when he could see 
the plain trail left by their friend, the Irish 
trapper, as well as the footprints of the sav¬ 
ages, without bending over to any extent. Then 
he had to get his face closer to the ground, as 
twilight came on, until, finally, he declared 
that he could no longer be positive that he was 
right. 

They dared not risk losing the trail. Conse¬ 
quently it became necessary to halt for a brief 
rest, during which they might munch some of 
the tough pemmican provided for just such an 
emergency. Then, a little later, when they felt 



ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 169 


refreshed, the tracking could be resumed by 
the aid of a flare. 

Darkness now surrounded them. The track¬ 
less forest stretched ahead, peopled only with 
enemies, both animal and human. These young 
pioneers never once faltered in their self-ap¬ 
pointed task. If, at any time, such a feeling 
tried to take possession of their hearts, it was 
indignantly suppressed. Only a thought of 
Kate, or of that almost distracted mother whom 
they had promised so faithfully to serve as 
though they were men grown, was needed to in¬ 
spire them anew with determination. 

Presently Sandy took his tinder bag, got to 
work with flint and steel, and, being somewhat 
of an expert in this necessary woodsman’s ac¬ 
complishment, soon had a torch blazing merrily. 

This Bob held as he once more took to the 
trail, gripping his gun in one hand. Sandy came 
close at his heels, with his cocked musket ready 
to be discharged at a second’s warning, and en¬ 
deavoring to see into the impenetrable walls of 
darkness that surrounded them. 

“ How does it go, Bob? ” he asked after a 
bit, during which they had covered fully fifty 
yards. 

“ Fine! ” answered his brother. “ I have no 



170 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

difficulty now, in seeing the tracks. If only they 
would halt for the night, we might come up with 
them. But Indians can keep up a dog-trot for 
hours, you know; and these thieves are doing 
that now.” 

4 ‘ But can one of them be carrying our sister 
all this time? ” asked Sandy. 

“ Not so. Look here, and you will see the 
print of her moccasin. I know it well, because 
it is so much smaller than the others,” re¬ 
marked Bob, halting a minute to point to the 
ground at a certain open spot. 

“ Yes,” cried Sandy, eagerly, “ and surely 
I ought to know it, too, since I helped Kate make 
those same moccasins. She is alive and well up 
to now. But, after all, Kate is a girl, and she 
will not be able to travel long in this fashion.” 

‘ i Then they will either have to stop and make 
camp, or else pick her up and carry her,” Bob 
declared, positively. 

‘ * But which do you think it will be ? 91 asked 
his brother. 

“ They fear the anger of the whites so much,” 
Bob continued, once more moving on, “ that 
they are anxious to get as far away as they can 
from the settlement. Perhaps they know 
Colonel Boone to be our friend, and his name 



ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS 171 


is feared in every Indian wigwam from Fort 
Pitt to the Mississippi, and from the Great 
Lakes down to the southern border of the Dark 
and Bloody Ground known as Kentucky. They 
will go on, and carry Kate . y y 

After that for a long time the brothers did 
not exchange words, save when something came 
up to excite their curiosity or their fears that 
they were about to lose the trail. 

“ I can see signs to tell me they have begun 
to stop now and then to hide their tracks. Only 
for the help given by O’Mara I would perhaps 
have to stop until we had daylight to show us 
the trail/ ’ Bob had declared, much to the dis¬ 
tress of his companion; for Sandy was easily 
influenced to extremes by either good or bad 
fortune. * 

“ We must go on just as far as we dare to¬ 
night,” he said, stubbornly. “ Every furlong 
gained will count in the end. As for being tired, 
I forget all that when I see mother’s dear face 
as she kissed us good-bye, and begged us not 
to give up until we believed every hope gone.” 

So, for another half hour, they managed to 
move along. Three torches had been consumed 
thus far, and Sandy held only one more. It 
would probably be sufficient, for human nature 



172 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


has its limit, and the boys could hardly expect 
to keep up this killing pace all through the long 
hours of that dreadful night. 

Now and then Bob would stop for a brief time 
to straighten up, and rest his cramped back. 
At such times it was only natural for him to 
stare ahead into the black depths of the woods 
that confronted them, stretching away hun¬ 
dreds of miles to the mysterious north, until 
finally they ended on the shore of that inland 
fresh water sea now known as Lake Erie, but 
at that time going with the others under the 
general name of the Great Lakes, though some 
called it after the tribe living on its shore. 

It was on one of these breathing halts that 
Sandy, happening to send a glance back along 
the hidden path they had come over, gave a low 
cry, and gripped the arm of his brother con¬ 
vulsively, as he exclaimed in a whisper: 

41 We are followed, Bob! I surely saw the 
figure of an Indian flitting from tree to tree, 
back there! Drop the torch and fall flat, before 
an arrow comes! ” 



CHAPTER XVI 


THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 

Quick to act in the presence of danger, Bob 
instantly dashed the blazing torch to the 
ground, and set his foot upon it. Then, in com¬ 
pany with his brother, he dropped flat to the 
earth, as they had been taught to do by the Irish 
trapper. 

They half expected to hear the hiss of a 
feathered shaft as it whizzed through the air 
over them, and each boy gripped his musket 
nervously, as he crouched there among the 
bushes, waiting for he hardly knew what. 

“ Do you hear them coming? ” whispered 
Sandy. 

“ No,” replied the other; “ but we must not 
stay here. They will try to surround us, and 
cut us off from flight.” 

“ But if we leave here we must lose the 
trail,” objected Sandy. 

“ True,” replied his brother in the same 

guarded tone; “ but should we be captured or 

173 


174 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


killed what then would become of poor little 
Kate? Come! ” 

As usual, Sandy was ready to give in to the 
better judgment of his older brother, and hence, 
when Bob began to creep away, he kept as close 
at his heels as possible. 

Doubtless their hearts beat faster than usual 
as the two lads thus moved over the ground. 
They had not gone ten paces when again Sandy 
drew the attention of the one in the lead to 
something he had discovered. 

“ Look to the left! ” he whispered, as he 
poked at Bob’s foot with the muzzle of his gun. 

Turning his head, Bob saw a startling sight. 

The late moon was just rising in the east. Be¬ 
cause of a dip in the ground, and also a thin¬ 
ning out of the trees in that quarter, due to 
some tornado that had made a slash in the 
timbers, her blood-red disc could be seen just 
above the horizon. 

And there, plainly marked against the face 
of the harvest moon, they could see the head 
and shoulders of an Indian brave! So plain 
did the picture appear that it was possible to 
even distinguish the feather that stood up in 
the hair of the red man. 

“ We must turn the other way,” said Bob, 




11 PLAINLY MARKED AGAINST THE FACE OF THE HARVEST 
MOON, THEY COULD SEE THE HEAD AND SHOULDERS 
OF AN INDIAN BRAVE! ” 















THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 


175 


as his brother crawled up alongside him, so that 
their heads came close together. 

“ Wait! ” whispered the other. “ Somehow 
that feather seems familiar to me.” 

“ Do you mean it might be Blue Jacket! ” 
asked Bob, eagerly; for, to tell the truth, he 
himself had had a similar idea flash through his 
mind. 

“ Nothing more. See, he seems to be looking 
around calmly, as though in no hurry to make 
a hostile move. There, he has put his hand up 
to his mouth. I believe he means to signal. 
Yes, listen, there goes the bark of the red fox, 
which you remember he always uses to tell us 
he is near. It must be Blue Jacket! ” 

Bob, however, laid a hand on his reckless 
brother. 

“ Let me try him first, Sandy,” he said; and 
immediately there broke out the singular grunt¬ 
ing sound which a hedgehog makes when turn¬ 
ing over the dead leaves looking for his food. 

Immediately a low voice called out: 

“ Bob! Sandy! ” 

After that there could no longer be any doubt 
as to the identity of the Indian whose head had 
been so strangely outlined against the circle of 
the moon. Gaining their feet, the two young 



176 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


pioneers directed the other to where they were 
standing. And it was with considerable satis¬ 
faction they thus made the discovery that it 
was a friend instead of a foe whose coming had 
alarmed them. 

“ Ugh! ” said Blue Jacket, as he gripped a 
hand of each, having learned this method of 
greeting among the whites while an inmate of 
the Armstrong cabin, recovering from his 
wound. “ Glad meet Bob, Sandy. Much won¬ 
der who carry torch in woods. Think paleface 
boy, no can be sure. What hunt so far away 
settlement? ” 

“ Kate has been stolen by four Seneca In¬ 
dians, and they are speeding as fast as they 
can go toward their village away to the far 
north! ” Bob explained. 

Had it been a white man he would have shown 
more or less astonishment at this startling 
news. Blue Jacket, being an Indian, and 
schooled to repress his feelings on all occasions, 
merely grunted, as he replied: 

‘ ‘ Bad! Much hard get back. How know 1 91 

Between them the two boys related how the 
awful shock had come upon them while they 
were about to return home after a successful 
hunt. They also mentioned what the reader 



THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 


177 


already knows about Pat O’Mara being on the 
trail in advance, determined to save the 
daughter of his good friends. 

“ And you, Blue Jacket, will you not join 
us? ” asked Sandy. 

The young Shawanee never hesitated an in¬ 
stant to consider the matter. 

“ Me go where Bob, Sandy go. Never for¬ 
get him mother, what she do. Tell much more. 
No can walk in woods till rest. Four Iroquois 
say? Who? ” he said, in the terse way that 
was so much a part of his stoical nature. 

“ We believe that she was stolen by a young 
Seneca chief known by the name of Black 
Beaver among the settlers. Do you know him, 
Blue Jacket? ” asked Bob. 

He felt the Shawanee start, which told him 
that what he said must have given their red 
friend a shock. 

“ Black Beaver sent down by Pontiac, visit 
my people with war arrow. Tell that red men 
all over north ready dig up hatchet, and go on 
warpath. How Bob, Sandy see um? ” he 
asked. 

“ He and three of his braves came to our 
settlement some time ago,” returned the white 
boy. “ They created quite an excitement, for 



178 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


it was believed that we were about to be at¬ 
tacked by the enemy. But they held their 
hands out, palms upward, in token of peace, 
and said they were a long way from their 
lodges, with their tobacco gone, and little am¬ 
munition left with which to kill game. So we 
gave them of both, and they pretended to go 
their way, saying that they were the friends of 
the white man.” 

“ Yes,” broke in Sandy just then; “ but we 
saw how the young chief looked hungrily at our 
pretty little sister, Kate, and both of us wor¬ 
ried, for fear that some day he might return to 
give us trouble. But we did not think it would 
come so soon. He hung around until the chance 
arrived; then the blow fell.” 

“ Blue Jacket saw trail through the woods,” 
continued the other, in his low musical voice; 
“ where four braves and a squaw be followed 
by a paleface. He think something wrong. 
Then night come, and he camp under tree. Just 
at moonrise see dancing fire through woods. 
Think Indians hunt deer with torch as much 
do. Just get close, fire go. But Blue Jacket 
know then it not Indian, but white boy. He 
think of Bob, Sandy. Listen for while; then 
give bark of red fox. Now know all.” 



THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 


179 


“ And you will stick to us through thick and 
thin, Blue Jacket ? ’’ demanded Sandy. 

The Shawanee brave once more thrust out 
his dusky hand, and gravely took that of each 
of the young pioneers in turn. They knew from 
this that they might count on such assistance 
as he could give them. Actions take the place 
of words with an Indian; a look or a movement 
counts for volumes. 

All made their way back to the trail, so that 
there would be no delay later on, when they 
were ready to once more take up the pursuit of 
the girl-stealers. 

“ How long must we lie idle here? ” groaned 
Sandy, when a full hour had passed by, without 
any further action. 

“ Perhaps until morning,” replied his 
brother, “so you had better try and get some 
sleep. We must be rested in order to carry 
on the pursuit.” 

“ But supposing they were not more than a 
mile away from here,” continued Sandy. “ We 
might come upon them in an hour, if only we 
kept moving. It seems foolish to stop just be¬ 
cause we are a little tired.” 

Bob knew that the poor fellow was so stiff 
he could hardly get up, once he lay upon the 



180 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ground; but the spirit was willing, if the flesh 
proved weak, and Sandy would have gone on if 
he had to crawl. 

“ If they have halted they would not sleep 
without a sentry/’ said Bob. 

“ That is true, I suppose/’ admitted the 
other, grudgingly. “ All Indians are careful 
not to be taken by surprise. Yes, they would 
be on their guard; but what of that, Bob? 
Surely, with Blue Jacket to help us, we could 
creep up close without any one being the 
wiser.' ’ 

“ You forget/' said Bob, “ that we could 
never follow the trail without a light; and those 
sharp eyes of the sentry would discover our 
torch long before we knew they were near. 
Then we would be made a target for a 
shower of bullets, and perhaps poisoned ar¬ 
rows. ’ 9 

Sandy was utterly disheartened. This sort 
of argument seemed unanswerable. He just 
gave a disgusted grunt, rolled over on the 
ground, and not another word did he speak 
during the entire balance of that long night. 

Bob knew that sleep had finally overtaken his 
brother, for he could hear his regular breathing 
after a time. And he was glad of the fact, for 



THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 


181 


both of them stood much in need of rest before 
they would be in condition to take up the chase 
once more. ♦ 

Morning found them awake, and ready to 
make a fresh start just as soon as the daylight 
proved strong enough for the Indian to see the 
trail. Bob was only too willing to turn over the 
lead to Blue Jacket, knowing that, while he, him¬ 
self, might serve fairly well, he was not at all in 
the same class as the trained young Shawanee, 
accustomed to reading every tiny sign that 
marked the tracks of the red fugitives. 

Once again they chewed some of the dried 
venison, washing the crude meat down with a 
draught from a near-by brook. Refreshed 
after their sleep, the two boys declared them¬ 
selves to be in good condition, and ready to 
make a day of it, if need be. 

More than once Bob noticed that the Indian 
cast an apprehensive glance upward. Sandy, 
too, saw this action, and took the first oppor¬ 
tunity to question his brother as to what it 
might signify. 

“ Why does he turn his eyes up to the tops 
of the trees every little while? ” he said in an 
aside to his brother, as the two of them trailed 
after Blue Jacket. 



182 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ The sun rose red this morning, you may 
have noticed? ” replied Bob. 

“ Yes, that is true, for I saw it myself, ” 
Sandy went on. 

“ And that stands for rain, all woodsmen 
believe.” 

Every rover of the big timber in those days 
put the utmost faith in such signs. If they saw 
the sun set in a sea of angry gold they would 
make ready for bad weather, just as surely as 
they believed the north lay close to the direction 
where the moss grew heaviest on those forest 
trees. 

44 But we have no fear of the rain,” de¬ 
clared Sandy, impatiently; “ let it come, for 
a wetting can’t stop us from following Black 
Beaver day in and day out till we overtake 
him. ’ ’ 

“ Still, if the trail is washed out, how then 
are we to follow? ” asked Bob, with a frown on 
his face. 

\ 

“ Oh! what a fool I was not to understand 
what you meant,” said the younger boy, 
now looking up toward the heavens quite 
as anxiously as their dusky guide had 
done. 

“ We can only hope that it will keep off long 



THE BARK OF THE RED FOX 


183 


enough to let us come up with the redskins,’* 
said Bob, thinking to buoy up his brother’s 
sinking spirits. 

“ Or that Pat O’Mara may be able to over¬ 
take the thieves, and rescue our sister,” Sandy 
observed. 

Then they fell into silence again, each busy 
with his own painful thoughts. All the time 
Blue Jacket was leading them on at a sort of 
dog-trot. His eyes followed the trail in a man¬ 
ner simply marvellous; and Bob again and 
again felt a sense of delight because good for¬ 
tune had sent this red friend across their path 
just when they needed assistance most. 

Hours passed, and they had covered many 
miles. Still, upon being questioned by the 
nervous Sandy, the Shawanee brave could not 
say that they were any nearer the little band 
they sought than when they had started, that 
morning. 

How long this pursuit would keep up, who 
could say? Day might follow day, without 
their gaining any perceptible advantage. As 
a last resort, of course, they could make direct 
for the big water to the north, and seek the vil¬ 
lage from which Black Beaver had come. But 
that would mean disheartening delay, with ac- 



184 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


cumulated difficulties about effecting the rescue 
of their sister. 

Nor was this day fated to entirely pass with¬ 
out something occurring to thrill both young 
pioneers, and prove once more the truth of Pat 
0’Mara’s words when he warned them of the 
constant need of watchfulness when abroad in 
the forest. 

Blue Jacket in the advance was swiftly cov¬ 
ering the trail, for he had heard a distant growl 
of thunder, and did not fancy what was coming. 
With his head bowed in earnest examination of 
the tracks left by those who had gone before, 
he could hardly be expected to see what lay 
ahead of him, leaving that for his comrades. 

“ Oh! Bob, look there! ” Sandy suddenly 
exclaimed, as he raised his musket; ‘ ‘ a panther 
just crouching to leap on our guide’s shoulders. 
Shoot him, quick! ” 



CHAPTER XVn 


PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 

“ No shoot! no shoot! M cried Blue Jacket, 
who seemed to size up the situation instantly; 
though up to that time he had not even sus¬ 
pected that he was about to be made the object 
of a savage attack on the part of a panther. 

Bob, too, understood the motive that influ¬ 
enced the Shawanee brave to exclaim in this 
way, as he jerked out his knife and threw him¬ 
self in an attitude of defence. Should a musket 
be discharged, there was always a chance that 
the report might be carried to the ears of the 
Senecas, if they happened to be within a few 
miles of the spot. 

Few Indians used guns in those days, the 
vast majority depending still upon the bows and 
arrows of their race, backed by tomahawks and 
knives, and sometimes war clubs in time of bat¬ 
tle. Hence, they might suspect that pursuers 
were on their trail, should the boom of a heavily- 
loaded musket be carried to their ears. 

So Bob threw out his hand, and instantly 

185 


186 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


covered the pan of his brother’s gun, so that, 
when the hammer fell, it caught his fingers, and 
no spark followed. Bob winced under the sharp 
pain; but he had accomplished his end, and 
what mattered a trifling cut ? 

But the panther had not waited all this time 
to accommodate these intruders in his forest 
preserves. The boys saw the sheen of his 
satiny sides as he sprang. 

“ Oh! he missed! ” gasped Sandy; but Bob 
knew why this was so, for he had seen the agile 
young Indian jump sideway just at the critical 
instant, so that, while the aim of the big cat 
may have been correct, he only alighted upon 
the ground. 

Blue Jacket never wavered, but instantly 
threw himself upon the gray beast. His keen- 
pointed knife was raised, and came down once, 
twice, thrice in less than as many seconds. It 
was no longer glinting in the sunlight, for after 
that first descent the steel seemed to be dulled. 

Both boys pushed forward, eager to get in a 
blow that would be of some assistance to this 
devoted red friend, who counted not his own 
safety or comfort when a chance arose whereby 
he could help his paleface comrades. 

They had dropped their guns as useless, since 





THE BOYS SAW THE SHEEN OF HIS SATINY SIDES AS 

HE SPRANG ” 








































. 




' 




















































PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 


187 


they could not be fired. Bob had drawn his 
knife, while Sandy had a hatchet in his grip; 
and both circled around, looking for an open¬ 
ing. 

The Indian and the panther were revolving 
so fast, however, that it seemed well nigh im¬ 
possible for any outsider to get in a blow, with¬ 
out running grave chances of seriously injur¬ 
ing the very one they wanted to assist. 

And, while they thus made half-hearted 
blows, fearful lest they strike their good ally, 
Blue Jacket suddenly sprang aside, leaving the 
animal struggling on the ground. In vain it 
attempted to follow its human adversary. The 
ready knife of the stalwart young Shawanee 
had struck in too deeply, and already was the 
panther feeling the throes of approaching death. 

Even as the boys gazed, spellbound, the ani¬ 
mal stiffened out, after one last violent move¬ 
ment. Blue Jacket was breathing very hard; 
but upon his set face they could see the 
look that comes to a victor in a well-fought 
battle. 

“ Are you hurt much, Blue Jacket? ” asked 
Sandy, fearful lest those terrible claws might 
have torn the young Shawanee. 

The other glanced down at a few places where 



188 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the blood had commenced to show, as marking 
the scratches he had received; then he shook 
his head scornfully. 

“ Not much hurt,” he announced. “ Panther 
hard kill — fight back — take many times 
finish,” and he opened the fingers of both 
hands to illustrate how many strokes he had 
made with that knife before he felt that he had 
accomplished his purpose. 

“ But why didn’t you let me shoot him? ” 
demanded Sandy, as though feeling hurt, be¬ 
cause at that short distance he knew one shot 
would have surely finished the “ woods terror,” 
as such beasts were known at the time. 

4 ‘ Make noise — tell Iroquois we here — no 
good, see, Sandy? ” was the way Blue Jacket 
put it; and Sandy immediately realized how 
great a sacrifice the other had just made in or¬ 
der to keep their presence on the trail unknown 
to those they hunted. 

He looked at his brother, and drew a long 
breath. 

“ Where could we have found a better friend, 
Bob? ” he said, earnestly. 

“ We must have looked a long way, Sandy,” 
returned the other. “ But let me put a little 
salve my mother made on those cuts, Blue 



PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 


189 


Jacket. There is poison in the claws of a tiger 
cat, and you may have a bad time, unless we 
look out for it.” 

“ Ugh! ” grunted the Indian, even while he 
allowed Bob to do as he wished. “ Much 
papoose, warriors think. No care ’bout hurt. 
Get well, bimeby. Blue Jacket come ’cross 
medicine grass soon, chew and put on cut, good. 
If white squaw make, then try. Ugh! ” 

Anything Mrs. Armstrong did was all right 
in the eyes of the young Shawanee brave. He 
had watched her, and learned to respect the 
gentle woman who ruled the Armstrong cabin 
with a sceptre of love. 

Leaving the dead panther where it had fallen, 
the three pressed onward again. If, during the 
balance of that weary day, the limbs of Blue 
Jacket ached, no one ever knew it, for not a 
single complaint or groan passed his lips. Bob 
realized that he in all probability suffered, for 
some of the scratches had been pretty deep; but 
he also understood the singular nature of In¬ 
dians, and how it was considered childish to 
show any evidence of pain. 

Night came on, and they were forced to halt, 
with those they hunted still far ahead. How 
the Iroquois managed to travel so far and so 



190 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


fast puzzled both boys, especially since they 
knew that Kate could not have possibly kept 
up under that fierce strain. 

Blue Jacket told them that there were occa¬ 
sions when the footprints of the girl utterly 
vanished for a mile or more. At such times he 
would even point out which of the four Indians 
must be carrying her, because the indentation 
of his moccasins showed deeper than those of 
his companions. 

And the boys were astonished at the simplic¬ 
ity of this reading of signs. Every hour they 
found something new to marvel over in connec¬ 
tion with the work of their dusky friend. He 
pointed out twigs that had been bent and 
righted; to leaves that had been displaced by 
the feet of the fugitives; and by such means 
easily figured just how long a time had elapsed 
since the others had passed. 

They started again at daybreak and, all the 
morning, followed the trail of the Iroquois. 

The storm, that had threatened on the pre¬ 
vious day and then passed by without a single 
drop falling, now came back for a second at¬ 
tempt. And this time they were not fated to 
escape. 

“ We are in for it,” said Bob, when about 




PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 


191 


noon the crash of thunder sounded close at 
hand, accompanied by vivid lightning. 

“ Yes,” declared Sandy, making a rueful 
face, ‘ ‘ I think I can hear the rain beating down 
in the treetops even now, over there. What a 
pity, when we were gradually overtaking the 
red thieves. Oh! what if we lose them, and 
have nothing left to follow? What can we do 
then, Bob? ” 

“ Just what I said before,” replied his 
brother, between his set teeth, as still another 
crash of thunder made the woods echo with its 
roll. “ We have only one plan to follow, then. 
Blue Jacket is of the same opinion; for I talked 
it over with him this morning. We must push 
straight on for the Great Lakes, and try to way¬ 
lay the party before they reach their village.” 

“ A desperate chance,” groaned Sandy. 

“ But we said we would never give up until 
the last gasp, Sandy. You forget, too, that we 
have a good and wise friend at work for us,” 
Bob went on, cheerfully. 

“ You mean Pat O’Mara? ” replied the other, 
quickly. “ Yes, I did forget. I am too apt to 
be hasty, I fear. Oh! I do hope he may be able 
to snatch Kate from the power of the young 
chief, Black Beaver. But why should he have 



192 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


stolen her at all? Kate is only a child, too 
young for any one to want to have for a sqnaw. ’ * 

“ I have been thinking about something Blue 
Jacket told me,” said Bob. 

“ Then please let me know, too, for I am all 
in a mix,” pleaded his brother. 

‘ ‘ He said that he knew Black Beaver had only 
a short time ago lost a little sister by some dis¬ 
ease. He told me that the old squaw, his 
mother, sat day by day out where the child was 
laid away, after the custom of the Indians, the 
body being sewed up in many thicknesses of 
buffalo skins, and placed on a platform, where 
the wolves could not reach her. ,, 

“ Yes, I saw an Indian graveyard when I was 
a prisoner among the Shawanees, and it was 
just as you say,” declared Sandy, eagerly. ” I 
know that daily the squaws come to talk with 
the spirits of those who are gone. I saw them 
placing earthen bowls of succotash on the 
ground, believing that the steam that arose was 
spirit food, since it vanished, and no one knew 
where it went.” 

“ Blue Jacket said that Black Beaver cared 
much more for his sister than most Indians 
do,” Bob continued, between the angry growl- 
ings of the thunder; “ and that he feared the 




PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 


193 


old squaw would lose her mind if slie kept on 
mourning. Now, you remember how he looked 
at our sister Kate when he came in for a supply 
of tobacco and maize! I really believe he had 
a sudden idea flash into his mind when he saw 
how pretty she was.” 

“ Now I understand what you mean, ,, cried 
Sandy, excitedly. 4 4 He believed that our Kate 
might take the place of the sister that was dead! 
They would color her skin, and teach her to for¬ 
get that her people were the hated palefaces. 
Bob, I believe you are right; and somehow the 
thought gives me much comfort, for then our 
little Kate will not suffer harm at the hands of 
Black Beaver and those with him. ” 

There was no time for further conversation, 
for the storm now rushed down upon them with 
terrific violence. With the howling wind, 
the flash of lightning, and the crash of thunder 
came a tremendous downpour of rain. It was 
possibly the breaking up of summer, and might 
be followed shortly by frost, such are the rapid 
changes that mark the meeting of the seasons. 

They had found a means for sheltering them¬ 
selves from the worst of the storm. A hollow 
tree might have answered fully as well; but, 
with those frequent zigzag flashes of the deadly 



194 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


electric fluid, none of them felt like taking such 
desperate chances, especially when a cleft in 
some rocks opened an avenue of escape. 

Here they cowered and waited as the storm 
rolled over. Bob knew of course that such a 
thing as trailing the Senecas after this was en¬ 
tirely out of the question; and that the only 
thing remaining to them was to strike out north, 
in the hope of finding the village to which Black 
Beaver belonged, and intercepting the party. 

That would mean the placing of some hun¬ 
dreds of miles between themselves and the 
dearly-beloved cabin on the Ohio, where that 
little mother waited in daily hope and expecta¬ 
tion of their return, with the lost Kate; but, 
for themselves these brave boys gave little 
thought. They were ready to face every species 
of peril in the endeavor to rescue their sister. 

When the wind had ceased to howl, and only 
the mutter of the retreating thunder in the dis¬ 
tance told that the storm was over, they came 
forth, grim and determined-looking, all three. 

Sandy tightened his belt; and there even was 
something suggestive of what was in his mind 
about that little action. It looked as though he 
were preparing for the tremendous tramp that 
loomed up ahead, when they must cross rivers, 



PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS 


195 


thread their way through tangled forests where 
few if any of their kind had ever before 
stepped; and face all manner of dangers by 
day and by night. 

Blue Jacket never even asked what they 
would have him do; for he already knew the 
plan of campaign. Deliberately he turned, un¬ 
til the western sun, shining out from the broken 
clouds like a ball of gold, was exactly on his 
left. Then he started to swiftly walk away. 

No longer did the young brave look down 
upon the ground as he moved along. There 
existed no need for such a thing, since the trail 
had been utterly washed out by that deluge of 
rain. Henceforth the trackless wilderness lay 
before them, and at the other end they hoped 
to find the village in which Black Beaver had 
his wigwam. 

Even upon the face of Sandy had come a grim 
look that seemed out of place in the features of 
a half-grown lad; but in those pioneer days 
responsibility set its mark early on the growing 
generation, and even a lad of fifteen could 
shoulder the cares and burdens of manhood. 

Days would come, and days would pass, and 
night must follow night. Sometimes sun and 
stars would beckon them onward; again per- 



196 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


haps storms would buffet these bold adven¬ 
turers; but through it all they would push 
resolutely onward, with but that one impulse 
urging them on, the rescue of Kate. 

What the near future held for them no mortal 
could say; but, no matter what lay beyond, Bob 
and Sandy would press on toward the goal, 
though they had to face the whole of the Six 
Nations, or the confederated tribes Pontiac had 
bound together in his wild hope for a general 
Indian war. 



CHAPTER XVIII 


THE BIG WATER AT LAST 

“ Will we ever get there, do you think, 
Bob? ” 

Sandy Armstrong asked this question for 
the tenth time one day, as the trio of young 
adventurers rested at noon, after tramping 
since early dawn. 

They had persisted in heading into the north 
ever since the day of the storm. Weary days 
and nights they had been. Sandy, being less 
resolute than his older brother, had fretted 
under the strain, and kept asking whether they 
must not be near the end of their pilgrimage. 

They had met many trials on the way. 
Rivers they had swam, holding their guns and 
ammunition, as well as their garments, on a log 
so as to keep them dry, which trick was in fre¬ 
quent use among the pioneers of the day. 

It was the duty of Bob to constantly 
strengthen his brother; and thus he even 
smiled, a bit sadly it may be true, as he turned 
upon Sandy. 


197 


198 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Blue Jacket knows; and he tells me that 
he can smell the big water in the air right now, ’ ’ 
he observed. 

“ You mean the Great Lake, on the shore of 
which, somewhere, the Iroquois have their vil¬ 
lage— is that it? ” demanded Sandy, brighten¬ 
ing up wonderfully. 

“ Yes, and he also tells me that we are apt to 
come out upon it before the sun goes down to¬ 
night,” Bob continued, encouragingly. 

“ Well,” said Sandy, heaving a big sigh, “ I 
shall be glad if it turns out to be so. I am so 
tired of waiting, day after day, and plunging 
into constant forests. If it wasn’t for Kate’s 
peril I could enjoy this journey, for you know 
I always said I meant to follow in the footsteps 
of Kenton, and look on new sights; but, as it 
is, I can think of nothing but these three things 
that trouble us.” 

“ Three? ” remarked Bob, as if surprised. 

“ Why, yes. There is Kate, to begin with,” 
Sandy started to say. 

4 4 And you are also thinking of our mother, 
should the dreaded Indian attack come when we 
are away? ” Bob pursued. 

“ Surely. There were many ugly signs of it. 
But, when I remember how our neighbor, Mr, 



THE BIG WATER AT LAST 


199 


Brewster, gave us his word that he would take 
her into his own family while we were gone, and 
look after her as if she belonged under his cabin 
roof, somehow I do not feel quite so bad. ,, 

“ But you said three, and that is only two 
causes,’ 5 Bob went on. “ Are you still thinking 
about father, Sandy? ” 

“ Surely,” the younger brother answered 
back. ‘ ‘ The more we plunge into this unbroken 
wilderness the greater become my fears for 
him. There were only four in the party. If the 
Indians ever discovered their trail, they would 
follow them like hungry wolves. Day and night 
they might hang about, seeking opportunities 
to ambush them. Oh! why did not Colonel 
Boone, or Simon Kenton, happen along at the 
time they were starting? ” 

“ Cheer up! ” cried Bob, slapping his brother 
on the shoulder encouragingly. u We shall be 
happy yet, and all together again, separated 
as we may be now. Our first duty is to find 
Kate, and steal her away from our enemies. 
Then, when we get home, we will only have to 
wait for our father to return, after the snow 
flies. I only hope he is able to cross those ter¬ 
rible mountains before the ravines are filled, 
neck high, with the drifts.” 



200 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ But,” said Sandy, suddenly, as if he sus¬ 
pected that these signs of despondency might 
be wrongly interpreted by his companion, “ I 
hope you do not think I am weakening, Bob? ” 
“ Not I,” returned the older one, instantly. 
“ By this time I ought to know your obstinate 
nature better than that, Sandy. You may com¬ 
plain, and seem downhearted at times; but 
there is no give up about you.” 

“ That is true,” nodded Sandy, as he set his 
teeth hard together. “ We started out to res¬ 
cue our sister from the hands of the Indians; 
and that we will do, if we live. But, Bob, have 
we not rested enough? I am just wild to set 
eyes on that wonderful inland sea about which 
Pat O’Mara and Simon Kenton have told us so 
much.’ ’ 

“ Yes, we will go on,” said Bob, quickly 
rising to his feet; and then, as Blue Jacket 
drew near, he asked further: “ About how 
many hours’ journey before we come upon the 
big water, Blue Jacket? ” 

Whereupon the young Shawanee brave de¬ 
liberated a minute, after which he gravely held 
up two fingers of his right hand. 

“ Soon get there, Bob, Sandy,” he said, 
quietly. “ No can smell big water further two 



THE BIG WATER AT LAST 


201 


hours’ walk. You wait, see Blue Jacket speak 
with straight tongue.” 

“ And he ought to know, Sandy,” continued 
Bob; “ because, you see, Blue Jacket has once 
before looked on the big water which some men 
call Erie. Only a short two hours; that will 
soon pass. Come, let us put out our best foot 
now. ’ ’ 

Once again they plunged into the thickets 
ahead, always with the Indian guide in the van. 
Blue Jacket had indeed proven a friend. Not 
only had he led them in almost direct line to 
the north, and managed to avoid contact with 
any roving band of Indians; but at the same 
time he had helped supply the little rescue party 
with fresh meat. 

It happened that at the time he met the two 
young pioneers the brave carried his customary 
bow and arrows. Few of his race equalled Blue 
Jacket in the use of this old-time Indian 
weapon. He could send a feathered shaft with 
wonderful accuracy, whether aimed at a human 
foe or a wild animal of the forest. 

Debarred from using their nbisy guns on 
account of the dangers that an explosion might 
bring upon them, the boys would have suffered 
from lack of fresh food but for the dexterity 



202 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


with which their dusky ally used his hickory 
bow, with its flint-tipped arrows, feathered 
with quills from the wild goose. 

Once he brought down a bounding deer that 
seemd in a fair way to escape, much to the ad¬ 
miration of both white lads, who had never be¬ 
fore witnessed such an exhibition of fine shoot¬ 
ing. 

On another occasion he had discovered 
several wild turkeys roosting on the branch of 
a big pine tree on a knoll, and, after consider¬ 
able creeping, managed to get close enough, on 
the leeward side of the wary birds, to bring a 
haughty gobbler to the ground, pierced through 
and through with an arrow, so that they feasted 
that night right royally. 

Then Blue Jacket also knew just how to build 
a fire with very dry wood that might not give 
forth any smoke, such as keen and suspicious 
eyes would discover. It was always started in 
a cleft, or a hole in the ground, nor did they 
ever keep it going after night set in. 

All these precautions were absolutely neces¬ 
sary, for they were in a hostile country, where 
every human being must be considered an 
enemy, whether he might be a red man or a 
French Canadian trapper. 



THE BIG WATER AT LAST 


203 


The summer was now gone. Touches of frost 
appeared each morning, now that the pilgrims 
of the great forest ascended continually further 
north. But they were young, hardy and vigor¬ 
ous, so that little they cared for this. The 
thought of the mission that drew them thus far 
away from their Ohio River home proved suf¬ 
ficient to make their pulses throb, and all minor 
troubles be ignored. 

An hour passed. Blue Jacket plodded on, 
showing not the faintest sign of weariness. In¬ 
deed, it seemed to Sandy that the young Shawa- 
nee brave must be made of iron to be able to 
stand up under all they had passed through 
without exhibiting the least symptom of 
fatigue. 

Even the brothers by now seemed to feel a 
peculiar dampness to the air, that in a way be¬ 
trayed the near presence of a large body of 
water. 

“ At any time, Sandy, you can expect to set 
eyes on the Great Lake,” remarked Bob, while 
they were pushing through an unusually dense 
patch of woods, where the close growing trees 
ahead shut out all sign of what lay beyond. 

Blue Jacket heard, and gave him a nod that 
seemed to tell Bob they might have their first 



204 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


view of that wonderful inland sea before many 
minutes passed. 

A short time later they came upon the verge 
of the forest. All at once a vacancy appeared 
beyond, a vast open expanse, and Bob had him¬ 
self caught a musical ripple that he knew must 
proceed from waves gently rolling up the beach. 

The Great Lake was before them, and, stand¬ 
ing thus among the bordering trees, the three 
gazed wonderingly out upon that mighty ex¬ 
panse. 

Although they had lived for a number of 
years in Richmond, both Bob and Sandy had 
only a hazy recollection of ever having seen the 
vast ocean so close by; so that this, their first 
introduction to what seemed a boundless ex¬ 
panse of water, was startling. 

As far as their eyes could reach nothing but 
a level horizon seemed to exist, where the water 
met the lowering sky line. To the east and west 
the same monotonous view was presented. To¬ 
day, where dark smoke from the funnels of 
countless busy steamers may greet the eye of 
the onlooker, there was at that time absolutely 
nothing, not even a canoe, at first appearing to 
the sight of the three youths. 

“ Oh! ” exclaimed Sandy, his breast heaving 



THE BIG WATER AT LAST 


205 


with the sensation of a rover who delights in 
new and novel sights, “ it is glorious, Bob! If 
I could only forget about Kate for a minute, 
Pd say it was well worth all our trials and suf¬ 
fering. One of my dreams has come true, and 
some day I am determined that the other will, 
too.” 

“ Yes,” replied his brother, soberly; “ I 
know that you are fairly wild to set eyes on 
that wonderful river De Soto discovered, and 
which they call the Mississippi. Perhaps some 
day you may have your wish, Sandy; but pray 
Heaven that no such mission takes you to its 
shores as has fetched us hither.” 

“ That could never be,” replied Sandy. 11 If 
we are blessed with the recovery of our dear 
sister this time, she will never again be allowed 
to leave the sight of those who can and will 
protect her. But, see, Blue Jacket has noticed 
something. He moves back into the woods, and 
beckons to us to do the same. What can it be, 
do you suppose, Bob? ” 

u He seems to be watching the point of land 
that stands out into the water,” said Bob. “ It 
has trees on it; but there are open spaces, too. 
Blue Jacket must have discovered something 
moving there.” 



206 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Perhaps it is a deer, and he means to get a 
shot with his bow and arrows? ” suggested the 
younger brother. 

“ Not so, for he is not handling his bow,’’ 
remarked Bob; and immediately added: 
‘ ‘ There! I saw it move myself; and, Sandy, 
unless I was mistaken, it must have been a 
canoe gliding along the other side of the tongue 
of land, heading outward.” 

Both lads immediately stepped further back 
among the trees. They understood that the 
chances were ten to one, at least, that, if they 
came upon any human being along the shore 
of the Great Lake, it must be an Indian, and 
therefore one to be distrusted on sight. 

Though the Iroquois, or Six Nations, had al¬ 
ways been friendly with the English, and op¬ 
posed to the French Canadian trappers and 
traders, still, the new conditions that were be¬ 
ginning to arise, where the Colonies had begun 
to defy the king, made them separate the sheep 
from the goats. They favored the Tories, who 
remained in league with the king’s policies; 
but were ready to take up arms against the 
insurgents, already beginning to call themselves 
Americans. 

Three minutes later a canoe darted out from 




THE BIG WATER AT LAST 


207 


behind the point of land, and started along the 
lake, about a quarter of a mile from the shore. 

‘‘Oh! look! ” said Sandy, who had the 
keener eyesight; “ there are just five in it, 
Bob, and one of them is a girl! ” 

“ Yes,” replied the other, whose lips were 
colorless as he gazed eagerly at the moving 
craft, where several flashing paddles were work¬ 
ing industriously; “ just the same number as 
Black Beaver’s band. But, Sandy, we do not 
know. To me it looks as if the girl might be a 
squaw. She is surely dressed like one, and, as 
well as I can see, her face seems to be that of 
an Indian.” 

“Oh! but you forget, Bob,” declared the 
other lad, earnestly, “ that we believe Black 
Beaver means to make our sister into a Seneca 
girl. Four braves and a girl — it must be those 
we seek! ” 

“ Even Blue Jacket is puzzled, if I read his 
face rightly,” said Bob. “ And so all we can do 
is to try and keep up with the canoe until it 
comes ashore. Then we will soon learn the 
truth. I only pray that what you think may 
turn out to be so, for it would make our mission 
the easier.” 



CHAPTER XIX 


A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 

“ They must land soon,” said Sandy, when 
they had been trying to keep up with the canoe 
for a long time, though without brilliant suc¬ 
cess, for it was far ahead of the three scouts, 
possibly a couple of miles. 

“ Yes,” Bob made answer; 44 for the day is 
near an end, and they will wish to camp. There, 
see, they have at last headed toward the shore. 
We must make sure to note where the boat 
lands, so that we can take up the trail if they 
plunge into the forest.” 

A short time later and they had seen the canoe 
pushed up on the sandy beach. After the cus¬ 
tomary manner of the red men, it was immedi¬ 
ately picked up and carried away, doubtless to 
be secreted among the bushes, either until morn¬ 
ing or until some future occasion when its serv¬ 
ices would be needed. 

44 Now what is our next move? ” asked 
Sandy. 

4 4 Keep straight along until we are within 

208 


A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 


209 


striking distance of the spot. But let us seek 
advice from Blue Jacket. He will know what is 
best,” was Bob’s answer. 

To their surprise the Shawanee brave de¬ 
cided that it would be just as well for them to 
remain where they were, and rest an hour or 
more. When darkness had fallen they could 
step out on the open beach, and make as good 
time as though they struggled along all the 
while through the dense underbrush of the 
woods. 

So they lay down and waited, meanwhile 
munching a little food in order to sustain them 
through whatever might befall them that 
night. 

Finally Blue Jacket arose, and spoke a few 
low words. Both brothers were immediately on 
their feet, eager to be moving. And, after their 
days of fighting with the rough country over 
which their long journey had taken them, it was 
certainly something of a relief to be able to 
stride over the sandy stretch of beach. 

Presently Sandy uttered a low cry: 

“ A canoe! Why cannot we use that! ” 

Bob did not reply, but looked questioning at 
Blue Jacket. The Indian nodded, and soon the 
three had entered a long canoe that rested on 



210 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the beach and contained two broad paddles. 
The two boys took the paddles, and presently 
the craft was moving silently and swiftly over 
the placid waters of Lake Erie. 

“ Not too far from shore. No can see other 
canoe if go too far,” cautioned the Indian. 

He stood in the bow of the canoe, his eyes on 
the alert for the first sign of the other craft. 
Thus over a mile was covered when the Indian 
gave a sign to turn back to the beach. 

Just as the Shawanee had promised, they ar¬ 
rived in the neighborhood of the landing place 
of the canoe about as soon as if they had kept 
diligently pushing forward through the forest, 
with its various pitfalls, ravines and thick¬ 
ets. 

Bob was eagerly waiting for the verdict which 
he knew must soon fall from the lips of Blue 
Jacket. He saw the young Indian craning his 
neck in order to take in all the surroundings, 
although his attention was of course directed 
more toward the depths of the woods than out 
upon the heaving lake. 

Then Blue Jacket’s hand fell upon the arm of 
Bob. 

“ Ugh! look, it is well! They camp! ” he 
grunted. 



A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 


211 


And Bob, following the line of the other’s ex¬ 
tended arm, saw the glimmer of a fire almost 
hidden in the dense forest. 

“We shall soon know now, Sandy,” he ob¬ 
served, cheerfully. “ Blue Jacket means to 
creep forward, and get close enough to the 
camp to learn whether these are they we have 
sought, or if we have to go on further.” 

“ But he has already told us he could see 
that the braves were Senecas, from the feathers 
in their scalplocks, and their manner of dress? ” 
declared S'andy. 

“ That is true,” Bob replied, softly; “ but 
let us drop down here, and wait for him to re¬ 
turn. He cannot be long. ” 

The Shawanee glided away as silently as a 
shadow, leaving Bob and Sandy at the point 
where a clump of silver birches would guide 
him again to their hiding place. 

“ What if he comes to tell us it is our 
Kate? ” demanded the younger brother. 

“ Then we can have but one duty, and that 
is to wrest her away from those who would try 
to hold her,” came the steady reply. 

“ They will resist,” remarked Sandy. 

“ It will not be well for them if they do,” 
said his companion, with that stern look upon 



212 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


his face, as seen in the starlight, that always 
reminded Sandy of their father. 

The minutes fairly dragged along. Sandy 
tried to count so as to have something to occupy 
his mind and keep him quiet; but he found it 
impossible to keep from thinking of that dear 
little sister whom they had come so far to save. 

Then, without the slightest warning, Blue 
Jacket stood beside them, grave, and with folded 
arms. Bob guessed the truth instantly from 
the manner of their red ally, for, had the other 
any good news to declare, he must have shown 
it. Sandy was not so ready a reader of human 
nature, and immediately exclaimed in a whis¬ 
per: 

“ What success did you have, Blue Jacket? 
Is it our sister, and those braves the Senecas 
who stole her away from our mother’s cabin? ” 

“ No Black Beaver, no paleface girl. Seneca 
braves, and young squaw, that all! ” replied 
the spy, stolidly. 

Of course the sanguine Sandy was terribly 
disappointed; so much so that he allowed a 
groan to break from his lips. After which once 
more his resolution took a firm grip upon him. 

“ Then we must forget all about this, and 
push on to find the village where Black Beaver, 



A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 213 

the thief, has his lodge. It keeps getting harder 
and harder; but nothing is going to stop us, is 
it, Bob? ’’ he declared, grimly. 

“ Nothing! ” echoed the older brother, as he 
pressed Sandy’s hand. 

They lay down, almost exhausted, and sought 
to secure the rest of which they were so sorely 
in need. With the coming of another day they 
watched until the little party once more 
launched their canoe, and started paddling off 
toward the east. 

To Bob this was a mere incident that inter¬ 
ested him but little. Blue Jacket on the other 
hand saw a deep significance in the move. He 
knew it very probably indicated that the village 
to which these Indians belonged was located 
somewhere toward the east, or they would 
hardly be going in the direction of the rising 
sun, and that was a most important point for 
them to know, now that the big water blocked 
their further travel to the north. 

Through the entire day they moved steadily 
along, at first in the canoe they had found, and 
then, abandoning the canoe, they continued on 
foot. But conditions had commenced to assume 
a different aspect. Three separate times 
during this day Blue Jacket’s amazing power 



214 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


of observation, or intuition, had saved them 
from running into danger. The woods seemed 
to be full of parties of Indians, either hunting, 
or heading toward some central point, where 
possibly they expected to hold a grand powwow 
or “ palaver,’’ as a council was called by the 
bordermen. 

Upon questioning Blue Jacket, after they had 
hidden themselves, and watched fully a dozen 
blanketed figures pass in Indian file, silent 
and mysterious, Bob was not much surprised 
to learn that it was the opinion of their red 
guide that these warriors could not be out on a 
hunt, else they would never have kept together 
in the way they did. 

Other signs, which the quick eye of the 
Shawanee could catch, told him that it was no 
foray in search of fresh meat that took these 
dusky sons of the forest abroad. 

“ Pottawottomies,” Blue Jacket had mut¬ 
tered. u Come from setting sun, up by other 
big water, Detroit way. Something doing, Bob, 
Sandy. No travel so far not so. Mebbe we 
learn same soon. Much war drum sound. Heap 
trouble for paleface settlers along Ohio. 
Ugh! ” 

“ He says those Indians were Pottawotto- 



A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 


215 


mies, Bob,” whispered Sandy. “ I wonder now 
if that firebrand, Pontiac, is up in this region? 
Perhaps we may even set eyes on him before 
we start for home.” 

“ Well, as for me,” remarked his brother, 
“I’d take little pleasure in doing that; for he 
has an evil name among the settlements. Many 
border posts have gone up in flame and smoke 
because of Pontiac, and the renegades that 
follow him, warring upon their kind. Accord¬ 
ing to my mind it would be a blessed day for 
pioneers everywhere if a bullet could be sent to 
lay the monster low.” 

Little did either of them suspect, while thus 
talking, how soon they were to be granted a 
most wonderful opportunity for seeing the 
notorious sachem, whose name had for years 
thrilled the hearts of a multitude of mothers, 
as they sheltered their children in their arms, 
and listened to the sounds of the mysteri¬ 
ous forest, peopled with cruel and crafty 
red foes. 

All through this day the three continued to 
head toward the land where the terrible waters 
fell from the lofty rocks with a roar that was 
deafening. To the superstitious Indians, Niag¬ 
ara’s mighty and unceasing clamor was the 



216 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


voice of the Great Spirit. Their medicine men 
claimed to be able to interpret what messages 
were being sent from the Happy Hunting 
Grounds for the guidance of the Great Spirit’s 
favorite children with the redskins. And for 
centuries, doubtless, had the cataract also been 
the scene of sacrifices, when beautiful maidens 
were sent over its brink to appease an angry 
Manitou. 

“ Why, the woods are full of them,” said 
Sandy, when, just before dusk, they were again 
compelled to hide in order to let a file of solemn 
warriors pass by. 

Bob was more than uneasy. He saw readily 
enough that, if what Blue Jacket suspected 
turned out to be the truth, and that a grand 
council was about to be held at which repre¬ 
sentatives of many tribes would appear, it made 
their mission all the more difficult of accom¬ 
plishment. 

Even though they succeeded in rescuing little 
Kate, once the alarm was given how could they 
ever expect to elude the scores upon scores of 
painted savages with whom the woods would 
quickly be filled? 

“ Perhaps it may mean more delay for us, 
Sandy,” he had said. 



A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 


217 


“ You make me groan when you say that, 
Bob,” the other had replied. 

“ Our only hope,” Bob pursued, firmly, 
“ must be to make a successful flight when we 
have swooped down on the wigwam of Black 
Beaver, and snatched our sister from the pos¬ 
session of the Iroquois. And, while the forest 
is fairly alive with enemies, what chance would 
we have for getting clear? ” 

“ Yes, I know you must be right, Bob, just 
as you always are,” Sandy muttered. “ But 
how can we ever stand it? ” 

“ Hist! Blue Jacket is holding up a warning 
finger again. He must smell more of the In¬ 
dians coming somewhere. Lie down, Sandy, 
and don’t even whisper till he gives the 
word.” 

Long before now Sandy had declared that it 
was his positive belief that their dusky guide 
must be able to scent the presence of Indians, 
because he always gave them warning so far in 
advance of the actual appearance of the 
prowlers; but Bob knew that it was from his 
wonderful sense of hearing that Blue Jacket 
thus forestalled the appearance of the Indians 
on their dog-trot journey; that he could catch 
the faintest sound, just as the long-eared rabbit 




218 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


might, or the timid mink that they sought to 
trap for his valuable pelt. 

Once more they were moving now, and it 
seemed to Bob that Blue Jacket must have some 
definite object ahead, for otherwise he certainly 
would not persist in pushing onward after the 
shades of night had fallen. • 

Presently he came to a stop. They were un¬ 
der a mighty oak tree, one of the widest spread¬ 
ing Bob had ever set eyes on. He saw Blue 
Jacket looking upward eagerly, as though in¬ 
terested in those great gnarled limbs that 
seemed to shut out the very stars of the 
heavens. 

“ Climb far up, Bob, Sandy/’ breathed the 
voice of the red guide, as he himself started to 
set the example. 

Wonderingly the two brothers obeyed. 
Neither of them could just then give the slight¬ 
est guess as to why Blue Jacket wished them 
to climb the tree. Even though the woods did 
seem to be full of moving red men, and the risk 
of discovery constant, it would appear that they 
might have readily found some dense thicket 
into which they could have crawled, and thus 
remain undiscovered by the enemy. 

But, by this time, both of the young pioneers 



A BITTER DISAPPOINTMENT 


219 


had come to understand that Blue Jacket never 
made a move without a good reason; and Bob, 
in particular, felt positive that presently they 
would learn the meaning of this queer action. 

Not until he had mounted far into the dense 
branches of the great oak did the young Shawa- 
nee brave halt. 

“ Now, sit like rock — no move — see soon 
what happen! ” whispered the red guide, as 
they came to a halt. 

A short time passed away. Bob was listening 
intently. Dimly a suspicion as to the truth was 
beginning to filter through his brain. He wished 
to verifv it, and it was for this reason that he 
strained his ears to the limit. 

Then from underneath something came to 
him. Sandy, too, must have heard it, for his 
lips sought the ear of his brother, and he whis¬ 
pered as softly as the sigh of the night breeze 
through the topmost branches of the great oak: 

“ Indians below! ” 




CHAPTER XX 


PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 

Knowing the folly of trying to enter into any 
sort of talk at such a time, Bob only pinched 
the arm of his more reckless brother. And 
Sandy understood what that signified; he was 
to say not another word. 

Other sounds reached them. Bob caught the 
well-known click of flint and steel, and knew 
that a fire was about to be started. Presently 
sparks flashed and then the tinder caught, so 
that a little flame darted up. 

As this was carefully fed by a practised hand 
it grew in volume, until the darkness that had 
rested under the thick branches of the great oak 
began to be dissipated. 

By degrees Bob could make out the figures of 
several Indians. He stared as if unable to be¬ 
lieve his eyes, for every one of them seemed to 
have vied with the others in assuming a gro¬ 
tesque dress. Several wore horns, and all of 
them had their faces hidden behind masks, usu¬ 
ally the heads of some animal. 

220 


PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


221 


The first represented a wolf, one of those 
gaunt timber pirates that could easily pull a 
stag to earth; another had on a buffalo head; 
while a third seemed to represent a panther. 
Their garments were elaborately fashioned, and 
their persons decked with all manner of tinkling 
bits of metal, and colored porcupine quills. Not 
a movement did they make after once throwing 
off their reserve but that Bob was reminded of 
a necromancer he had once seen a very long 
time ago, in a playhouse in Richmond, to which 
his father took him at Christmas time. 

He knew what these strange personages were 
as soon as his eyes beheld their remarkable at¬ 
tire and actions. Up to now Bob had never 
really set eyes on a real medicine man, though 
Sandy claimed to have done so at the time he 
was a prisoner in the Shawanee village. 

But why half a dozen of them; and what sort 
of business had brought them here to this tree, 
that must be a land mark in the neighborhood? 
Did Blue Jacket know? He claimed to have 
been in this vicinity before; then perhaps he 
was acquainted with the very tree, in the 
branches of which they perched at that min¬ 
ute. 

Still watching, Bob saw that the queer men 



222 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


below were carrying on in a strange way as they 
fed the flames, and kept building up the fire. 
They went through all manner of gestures, fling¬ 
ing their arms wildly aloft, dancing as they 
circled the flames, throwing some sort of powder 
into the fire that for the moment cast a blood 
red and terrible glow upon everything around; 
and anon even taking hold of hands to engage 
in a wild orgy around the blaze. 

By slow degrees he began to realize that these 
seven medicine men must belong to just as many 
different tribes. It was as though they had 
been sent here ahead in order to start the 
sacred fire at which, later on, the heads of those 
same clans would gather in solemn conclave! 

Did it mean that the idle wish of Sandy was 
to be thus quickly fulfilled? Had Blue Jacket 
in some way heard what was said, or guessed 
it; and was he now bent on giving them a 
chance to hear the coming council, when repre¬ 
sentatives of many nations would come to meet 
those of the Iroquois, and try to wean them 
away from their allegiance to the English? 

The thought thrilled the young pioneer. He 
did not know whether to be glad or fearful be¬ 
cause it was so. It would, of course, be a won¬ 
derful thing for them to see this council which 






DANCING AS THEY CIRCLED THE FLAMES 






































-1 






PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


223 


must go down in history; to perhaps look upon 
the great Pontiac, as well as the head chiefs 
connected with many powerful tribes, such as 
the Sacs, the Foxes, the Senecas, the Onon- 
dagas, the Mohawks and the war-like Dela¬ 
wares. But what if, through some little mis¬ 
fortune, they were discovered? . 

While Bob was giving way to these thoughts 
he saw that the queer dance below had come to 
an end. The strangely garbed medicine men 
vanished from view, and other Indians began 
to troop in to gather about the fire. 

By dozens and scores they came from every 
quarter. Bob could hardly believe he was not 
dreaming, for the great space below began to 
be fairly packed with Indians. Some stalked 
around in their skin blankets, while others were 
naked down to the waist. 

These latter were the wild Ojibways, with 
quivers slung at their backs, and light war clubs 
resting in the hollow of their arms. There were 
Ottawas wrapped close in gaudy blankets, and 
Wyandots fluttering in painted shirts, their 
heads adorned with colored feathers, and their 
leggins garnished with shining metal discs that 
often chimed like silver bells. 

He knew that he was undoubtedly looking 



224 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


upon the most noted chiefs west of the moun¬ 
tains. Some of these must be men who had led 
in the wars of the last few years, where scores 
and hundreds of lives had been lost. 

Afterwards he learned from Blue Jacket that 
the Shawanee sachem Silver Heels was present, 
as well as Sagan the Cuyuga chieftain, later on 
the terror of the settlers; and that the young 
fellow who dressed much like a white man was 
really Joseph Brant, the adopted son of Sir 
William Johnson, and later renowned as Tha- 
yendanega, the Mohawk scourge of the Ameri¬ 
can settlements; while others were Turtle 
Heart, old Bald Eagle, and Longboat of the 
Delawares. 

Now the assembled Indians began to seat 
themselves cross-legged around the council fire. 
It was easy to believe that the inner circle must 
be made up of those in whose hands lay the most 
power. Nor were they all Indians. Here and 
there among the motley throng the watchers 
above had glimpsed a white man, usually a 
French Canadian trapper or trader. These 
men’s sympathies were all with the war Pontiac 
was waging upon the venturesome English, who 
had pushed their outposts so far in the direction 
of the Mississippi. 



PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


225 


Bob started when he recognized two familiar 
faces among those below; these were no other 
than Armand Lecroix, the leader of the men 
with whom the Armstrong boys had quarrelled 
at the time the dispute arose concerning 
the ownership of the game; and another fellow 
equally as brutal in his ways, Jacques Larue, 
with whom Bob and Sandy had had trouble in 
the past. 

It was not surprise at seeing these men here 
among the hostile Indians that gave Bob that 
chilly feeling. He was only thinking how 
pleased the French trappers would be if they 
discovered how the grand council was being 
spied upon, and who the unfortunates in the 
tree-top proved to be. 

Looking closer, Bob felt positive he could 
recognize Pontiac. The most notorious Indian 
of history, whose one dream it had ever been to 
unite the many tribes into a confederacy, and 
then sweep the hated palefaces back into the 
ocean from which they had sprung, was a no¬ 
table figure. 

His manner was commanding, and even his 
garb bespoke the kingly role he had taken upon 
himself. He was not above middle height, 
though his figure was commanding. His com- 



226 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


plexion was darker than is usual with his race, 
and his features had a bold and stern expres¬ 
sion, while his bearing was that of a man accus¬ 
tomed to sweeping away all opposition by the 
force of his imperious will. 

Ordinarily Pontiac’s attire was that of the 
primitive savage, girded about the loins, wear¬ 
ing beaded moccasins, and with his long black 
hair flowing loosely; but, when seated in coun¬ 
cil, he was wont to appear as Bob and Sandy 
now gazed in awe upon him, plumed and painted 
in the full costume of war. 

Every eye was fastened upon Pontiac when 
he spoke, after the pipe had been passed around, 
and each member of the council had taken a 
whiff, sending a little puff toward each point 
of the compass. 

Although the voice of the great sachem 
reached them easily, neither of the boys could 
understand what he said, as he made his pas¬ 
sionate appeal to the chiefs of the Six Nations 
and many others assembled there. It was easy 
however for them to guess that he was artfully 
appealing to their passions and prejudices, and 
telling them how, if only all the red tribes would 
join together, they could once again possess the 
land that their fathers had owned. 



PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


227 


Then others spoke, some apparently in favor 
of the proposal of the great leader, others coun¬ 
selling caution. Thus time passed until a full 
hour had gone. The boys had not dared even 
move all this while, though they felt stiff and 
sore from so long perching upon the hard limbs. 
Screened by the leaves that still clung to the 
branches of the council oak, they had seen one 
after another get up to give his views upon the 
subject Pontiac had brought as a message from 
his powerful tribe that had its home along the 
border of the other Great Lakes, where Detroit 
and similar frontier posts held out against the 
attacks of the allied Indians. 

No eye was strong enough to pierce the screen 
that hid the three spies. Doubtless all of those 
below found enough to interest them in watch¬ 
ing the play of passion, or entreaty, upon the 
faces of the speakers, without allowing their 
gaze to roam elsewhere. Most of all would they 
fail to glance up amid the foliage of the oak, 
where only a lynx or a wolverine might be ex¬ 
pected to lurk, if indeed any living thing could 
be found there. 

Sandy wished with all his heart that it were 
over. He had seen enough, and was fairly wild 
to get relief from his cramped position. Pon- 



228 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


tiac, after all, while possibly a wonderful man, 
might pall upon one! 

There was one event, however, that broke up 
the monotony of hearing those speeches in a 
tongue which they could not understand. This 
happened when the fiery Jacques Larue arose to 
his feet, and launched into a violent talk in the 
Indian language, which he seemed to under¬ 
stand as well as though he had been born a red 
man. 

He apparently differed from the line of argu¬ 
ment that the great sachem Pontiac had ad¬ 
vanced, for he frequently turned toward that 
individual, and seemed to shake his hand almost 
threateningly. 

Whatever it may have been that stood be¬ 
tween them, Bob knew well that it had no con¬ 
cern regarding the scheme to clean out the 
pioneer settlements along the Great Lakes and 
the Ohio River. Like all his breed, Larue 
would have welcomed such a catastrophe, could 
it be brought about. 

Perhaps his suspicions had been aroused, and 
he believed that this vast plot of Pontiac em¬ 
braced the French as well as the English — that, 
after the latter had been wiped out, the red 
hosts, flushed with victory, were to turn 



PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


229 


upon their supporters, and finish the French 
also. 

History tells us that Pontiac was suspected 
of harboring such a scheme, and only accepted 
the help of the French trappers and traders in 
order to lull them into a condition of fancied 
security. 

There was a sudden break in the harangue 
of Jacques Larue when Pontiac, as if stung 
beyond all control, sprang to his feet and struck 
the excited French trapper full in the face. 

A terrible moment of silence followed. Fully 
fifty dusky hands sought tomahawks and knives 
as the assemblage watched to see what the sev¬ 
eral companions of Larue would do to avenge 
the open .insult. One move would have sealed 
their death, and those men knew it only too well. 

Face to face Pontiac and the French trapper 
stood, with eye glaring into eye. Then with a 
contemptuous laugh the chief made a movement 
with his imperious hand, as if ordering Larue 
to get out of his sight before he gave the signal 
for him to be cut to pieces. 

There was nothing for it but to obey, since 
Larue knew only too well that he had few 
friends among all that assemblage. Not one 
would dare lift a hand against the dusky idol 



230 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


of the Indian tribes, the silver-tongued and 
powerful sachem of the Pottawottomies. 

He slunk away, and vanished beyond the 
outer circles; but that last frown which he bent 
on Pontiac told only too plainly what hatred 
and bitter venom was hidden in his black heart. 

Nor did either of the watching and listening 
white boys imagine for a moment what a tre¬ 
mendous influence that very dramatic circum¬ 
stance was fated to have upon their own for¬ 
tunes. And still it was so. 

The great council, held under the famous oak 
where many such had taken place in the years 
that were gone, broke up at last. The final 
speech had been delivered by Pontiac himself; 
and once more his wonderfully persuading voice 
seemed to be raised in pleading. The Iroquois 
chiefs had been divided, as near as Bob could 
make out, some being in favor of joining the 
tremendous chain of confederated tribes, while 
others clung to their well-known allegiance to 
the English. 

Now the immense crowd had begun to melt 
away. By dozens and scores the Indians took 
themselves off, each tribe seeming to cling to¬ 
gether. Pontiac himself, Bob noticed, seemed 
to accompany an old and wise-looking chief who, 



PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


231 


from his dress, he believed must be the famous 
Delaware sachem, Bald Eagle; and with them, 
• too, was the Seneca chieftain. 

In ten minutes not an Indian was to be seen 
below. The fire had burned down, and was 
slowly dying out. Sandy would have tried to 
make a move in order to at least change his 
position, only that his brother nudged him, and 
in this way warned the impatient one that they 
had not yet seen the end of the affair. 

Figures were again moving under the sacred 
council oak tree. Once more did the seven 
strange figures of the allied medicine men ap¬ 
pear, to again exhort the Great Spirit to listen 
to the appeal,# that had so recently been spoken. 
They danced around the dying fire, they chanted 
in unison, they waved their arms, and rattled 
hollow gourds that contained hard seeds, until 
the effect was most awe-inspiring. 

Finally, as a fitting wind-up to these queer 
proceedings that seemed to partake of the sav¬ 
age nature of the Indian, each of them tossed 
a handful of powder in the embers of the fire. 
For the second time that red flame arose, to 
bathe the entire vicinity in its fierce glow, and 
to avoid which the watchers aloft had need to 
close their aching eyes. 



232 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


When they opened them again the seven 
medicine men had vanished, gliding away as 
silently as ghosts. Only the dying fire lay be¬ 
low to tell them of the wonderful experience 
, which they had just passed through, thanks to 
the sagacity and daring of their faithful guide, 
Blue Jacket. 

There was no further use trying to restrain 
Sandy. He saw that the coast below was clear, 
and felt that no Indian would dare profane the 
sacred meeting-place after the medicine men 
had thus consecrated it anew. 

Nor did Blue Jacket attempt to stop him. 
They certainly could not remain where they 
were; and, since the Seneca village could not be 
a great distance off, it might be well for them to 
try to find it. 

As Bob knew, it was the intention of their 
dusky friend to enter, when they had discov¬ 
ered the wigwams of the tribe to which the ab¬ 
ductor of little Kate belonged. He could play 
the part of a messenger from the south, sent to 
learn more about the plans of Pontiac, so that 
the ever hostile Shawanees might be able to 
work in common with the rest of the tribes. 

Once within the borders of the big village it 
would be easy for Blue Jacket to discover 



PONTIAC IN THE COUNCIL 


233 


whether Black Beaver had returned, and, if so, 
what manner of prisoner he had brought with 
him. 

After that they could lay their heads to¬ 
gether, to fashion a plan by means of which the 
girl might be spirited away. 

Once on the ground Sandy began to stretch 
himself vigorously. Nearly two hours of con¬ 
finement, without being allowed to move much 
of the time, had apparently tied his young 
muscles in knots, so that they actually pained 
him. 

“ Pm glad to be able to put up my hands 
again, I tell you,’* Sandy remarked, as he thus 
stretched his limbs, and drew in huge breaths, 
as though he had not been allowed to use his 
lungs properly for fear lest he thus betray 
their place of concealment to the watchful 
enemy below. 

Bob was himself feeling much better since 
allowed to leave that hard perch in the thickest 
part of the giant oak. He would have so ex¬ 
pressed himself, no doubt, only that he was 
given no opportunity. Even as he opened his 
mouth to reply to his brother, a gruff voice 
broke in upon them from the rear, saying: 

“ Zat is ver’ goot, begar! Suppose, then, 



234 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


young monsieur continue to elevate ze hands, 
and so it vill not tempt me to shoot. If so be 
I must press zis trigger of ze gun, poof! it vill 
be ovaire so quick wif you all. Stand still, or 
ze consequences be on your own heads! ” 
Bob felt a cold chill as he listened to these 
scoffing words. He recognized the voice as be¬ 
longing to Armand Lacroix, the French trapper 
who had given him such a look of hatred at the 
time there was a dispute between them as to 
whom the game belonged, and which was set¬ 
tled in favor of the young pioneer. 



CHAPTER XXI 


PRISONERS 

“ Steady, Sandy! ” 

il But, Bob, must we just stand here, and let 
them take us prisoners? ” asked the younger 
brother, in an agonized voice. 

u We can do nothing to help ourselves just 
now,” Bob went on, in a singularly calm tone, 
“ because, you see, there are four of them; and 
each man has a gun pointed at us. We must 
try to kill time, hoping that Blue Jacket may 
bring us help in some way.” 

“ Blue Jacket—-where is he? ” asked Sandy, 
wonderingly. 

“ I do not know,” replied Bob. “ He dis¬ 
appeared like a shadow. I think he must have 
heard the breathing of these men as they came 
along, and, knowing that it was too late to cry 
out a warning to us, he just melted away, as is 
his habit.” 

“ Will he desert us, then? ” asked Sandy, 
with a trace of bitterness in his voice. 

“ Impossible,” answered his brother. “ We 

235 


236 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ought to know Blue Jacket better than to think 
that of him. Forget all about him just now, and 
perhaps, if things come to the worst, he may 
show his hand.” 

“ What for you say zat, young monsieur! ” 
demanded the leering Lacroix. “ Haf you zen 
a compadre near by? Zen it vill not be good 
for him to come back. Ve vill engage to make a 
prisoner of heem just as ve haf of you. Drop 
ze guns, both of you! ” 

Bob instantly obeyed. He would have re¬ 
sisted to the last gasp if there had been any 
chance, however slight; but, when four guns 
were bearing on them, with, the owners not more 
than ten feet away, it would have been fool¬ 
hardy to refuse to carry out the order of the 
lawless French trapper. 

Besides, he somehow fancied that the others 
would have preferred a defiant attitude on their 
part, since it would give them a reasonable 
excuse to shoot. 

Sandy, seeing that his brother had in this 
way acknowledged their case to be apparently 
hopeless, also cast his faithful old musket from 
him. Seldom had it ever missed fire, and he 
was accustomed to depending on it when in 
sore need; but just then it could only invite 



PRISONERS 


237 


the coming of quick death, if he so much as 
tried to draw the hammer back. 

The stalwart woodranger of course noted 
this unhappy manner of Sandy. It seemed to 
rather please him, since the shoe was now on 
the other foot, and he had the whip-hand of the 
young pioneers. 

“ Ze leetle cub, he not like eet ver’ much, ,, 
he chuckled. “ But it is ze fortunes of war, 
monsieur, and you must bend ze neck to ze 
sword. Ve haf you in ze hole and zis game eet 
ees in our hands. Now, tell me if you please, 
vat brings you up to zis country, so far avay 
from ze happy cabin on ze Ohio, la belle river? 99 

Neither of the boys replied, Sandy because 
he was too angry to speak, and Bob on account 
of wanting to gather his wits first, before com¬ 
mitting himself. To tell these enemies about 
Kate would be weakening their case. Should 
they escape from the clutches of the four 
Frenchmen, the chances were that Lacroix 
would warn Black Beaver that the brothers of 
his captive had come to rescue her and a trap 
might he laid into which they would fall. 

“ Ze astonishment of ze matter almost strike 
me dumb,” continued the other, who seldom 
knew when to stop talking, once he started. 



238 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ To zink zat zese leetle boys of ze Eenglish 
should hide zemselves in zat sacred oak, and 
hear all zat was said at ze grand council! It 
ees marvel! It is superb! I am not agree in 
my mind whether ve ought to visit ze punish¬ 
ment on zere heads ourselves, Monsieur Larue, 
or take zem to ze Indians for to run ze gaunt¬ 
let, and burn at ze stake! ” 

Sandy shook his head. It was as much as to 
tell the speaker that if he were carrying on this 
style of talk simply to frighten the two un¬ 
daunted lads, he might as well save his breath. 

At this moment the other leader among the 
trappers took a turn in the conversation, which 
up to now had been monopolized by Lacroix. 

“ I haf von idea, Armand, my friend/’ he 
observed, looking very wise. 

“ Zat is ver’ well; but suppose you share ze 
same wif us all! ” Lacroix cried, as he pressed 
his cheek against the butt of his heavy gun, 
after the manner of a man who longed to pull 
trigger and do fell execution. 

“ You seem to think,” Larue continued, “ ze . 
young cubs zey come avay up to zis far coun¬ 
try just to climb in zat tree, and listen to ze 
great Pontiac talk. Parbleau! zat is all wrong, 

I assure you on my honor. Look back, my 




PRISONERS 


239 


friend, and perhaps you vill remember zat 
when ve lodged in ze great town of ze Senecas 
zere came into the same a young chief who 
bring wif heem a prisoner! ” 

Bob started, and bit his lips until the blood 
came. Without meaning to do the brothers a 
good turn Larue was about to make a disclo¬ 
sure that would do away with uncertainty con¬ 
cerning the whereabouts of the stolen Kate. 

“ Oui, I remember ze same, ver’ well,” said 
Armand; 1 i but what may zat haf to do wif our 
young friends here? Haf zey lost some one 
from zere family? Was zat girl belong to zem, 
I would like to know? ” 

Jacques Larue nodded his head violently. 

“ At ze time somezings seem to say to me 
zat somewhere haf I seen ze pretty face of ze 
leetle one. Now I know. She is ze seester of 

i 

ze Armstrong boys. From her home haf she 
been carry by ze young chief, who fancy her 
face, because he lose heem own seester not so 
long ago. And so, behold, do zese brave boys 
come all zis way to rescue ze Kate. Is it not 
grant? Alas! to zink zey fall themselves into 
ze power of ze savages, and be made to burn 
at ze stake. Zat is sadf” 

He pretended to look mournful as he said 



240 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


this; but there was an old score to be settled 
between Jacques and the young pioneers, and 
Bob was not deceived in the least by this mock¬ 
ery of sympathy. 

Back in those sparkling orbs he could see the 
wicked delight that filled the soul of Larue at 
this unexpected pleasure. For the moment 
even the insult, put upon him by the great 
Pontiac in the presence of scores of chiefs and 
warriors, was almost forgotten. 

Nor was Armand Lacroix more to be de¬ 
pended on. He might, down in his heart, feel 

>■ 

something like admiration for the grit shown 
by the lads in thus venturing into a hostile 
country in order to serve their loved sister. 
That feeling, however, would be utterly super- 
ceded by his joy at having a chance to vent his 
evil spite upon the boy who had held him up at 
the muzzle of his gun, and made him a laughing 
stock for Simon Kenton and his fellow bor¬ 
derers. 

“ Sacre! vat shall be done wiz zem? ” de¬ 
manded Lacroix, half lowering his levelled rifle; 
for, since the boys had cast away their weapons, 
they could hardly be deemed dangerous, espe¬ 
cially since there were two men to each lad. 

“ It was a clever idea you haf, Armand, to 



PRISONERS 


241 


come back to ze sacred oak, where ze Indians, 
you say, would nevaire interrupt us, for a talk. 
Only for zat we would not kaf ze pleasure of 
meeting our young friends. You ask what sail 
we do wif zem? Eef I haf my way, I say, turn 
zem loose and zen give each twenty paces to run, 
after wich we would lire. I haf drive ze head of 
a nail at more zan zat.” 

“ Ze idea heern not haf had, Jacques; but, 
after all, what could equal ze pleasure of turn¬ 
ing zese two bold trailers over to ze Pottawott- 
omies wif Pontiac. Zey know how to torture 
ze foe. Zey haf long experience. Eet is no 
business of ours how zey put ze prisoner to 
death; zey are our allies, and we cannot let es¬ 
cape zose who carry ze great secret of ze coun¬ 
cil.” 

Bob knew the character of these half-savage 
French trappers. He believed they were on a 
par with the renegade white man whom he had 
heard utter such bitter words at the council fire, 
and whom he fancied must be the notorious 
Simon Girty, himself. Had it been his own life 
that was in peril, Bob would have refused to 
make any sort of appeal to the lawless trappers; 
but, for the sake of little Kate, he felt that he 
must lower his pride to plead with them. 



242 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Lacroix and Larue,’’ he said, slowly, and 
with an earnestness in his manner that chained 
their attention; “ for myself I would scorn to 
plead; but, because of the poor child who is at 
this hour a prisoner in the Iroquois village, I 
ask you to let us go free. Her poor mother’s 
heart is nearly broken, and if Kate never comes 
back, it will surely give way. If you would only 
let us go, so that we might try to set her free, 
we give you our solemn promise that we will de¬ 
liver ourselves up to you again, if we survive, 
so that you can do what you will.” 

The two Frenchmen exchanged glances. 
They could not but be influenced by the brave 
words of the half-grown lad. At the same time, 
they had too long led utterly wicked lives to al¬ 
low themselves to be tempted to do the right 
thing now. 

‘ 1 Listen to zat, would you, Larue? ” said 
Armand, with a sneer. “ Ze cub wants us to 
let him go free zis time. He even promises zat 
he will call heemself our prisoner at any time 
in ze future, eef he lives. It is to laugh. I haf 
always believe ze bird in ze hand is much better 
zan two in ze bush. How ees it, Jacques, shall 
we bow ze young monsieur and hees brother 
off ze premises, or turn zem over to ze sav- 



PRISONERS 


243 


ages, to run ze gantlet, and afford much 
sport? ” 

“ Our duty eet is plain, Armand,” the sec¬ 
ond Frenchman remarked, with a chuckle; li we 
dare not play double wif our allies. Zey would 
turn on us and poof! zat would be ze end of 
everyzing. No, it must be zat we make ze pris¬ 
oner, and march ze cubs in to ze Iroquois town 
to be punished as spies.” 

“ Oh! ” said Sandy, unable to entirely keep 
quiet, with his pulses beating like a furious 
trip-hammer. 

iC Stand still, Sandy! ” said Bob in a low 
tone, fearing that his impulsive brother was 
about to take desperate chances in leaping at 
the four French trappers; ‘ ‘ all may not yet be 
lost. Hoid hard for just another minute, I beg 
of; you! ’’ 

Something in Bob’s tone gave Sandy a new 
lease of life. It was as though he had made a 
discovery that meant hope. And this was, in¬ 
deed, what had happened, for, just five seconds 
before, Bob had seen a head suddenly raised 
above the surrounding bushes; and even in the 
dull light of the dying fire he believed that he 
had recognized the well known features of Pat 
O’Mara! 



CHAPTER XXII 


THE TABLES TURNED 

Fortunately Bob understood what part he 
ought to take in the turning of the tables on 
the quartette of Frenchmen. If he could only 
hold their attention for a brief time, Pat 
O’Mara might creep up close enough to spring 
his surprise. 

That one glimpse which Bob had taken had 
shown him another thing; the Irish frontiers¬ 
man was not alone! In several other places the 
bushes were waving slightly, proclaiming that 
others must also be advancing cautiously 
toward the council oak. 

He knew not whom they might be, and, be¬ 
yond the possibility of Blue Jacket constituting 
one of the number, could not even guess who 
were Pat’s comrades. But it was positive that 
they must be friends, else they would not be up 
here along the border of the Great Lakes, spy¬ 
ing upon the grand council of the tribes in 
league with that trouble-maker, Pontiac. 

And so wise Bob immediately set to work to 

244 


THE TABLES TURNED 


245 


hold the attention of Larue and his three com¬ 
panions. Seconds would count just then, since 
their friends were crawling closer and closer 
all the time. 

“ Wait for a minute, please, gentlemen all! ” 
he cried, holding up a hand, as he saw Armand 
take a step forward, doubtless eager to bind 
with deerskin thongs the lads he hated so bit¬ 
terly. 

There was something about Bob’s manner to 
arouse their curiosity. Besides, they knew no 
reason why they should wish to hurry. The 
Indians dared not return again to the vicinity 
of the sacred council oak, after the medicine 
men had conducted their closing exercises un¬ 
der its wide spreading branches; time must 
elapse before the spell which had been placed 
on the tree would have exhausted its charm. 
Hence there seemed to be no danger of inter¬ 
ruption. 

Besides, they fancied playing with their 
prisoners, somewhat as a cat does with a 
mouse, enjoying, in anticipation, the feast to 
come. 

“ What is eet ze young monsieur would say 
to us? 99 asked Larue, making a mock bow, as 
though he could not forget the manners of a 



246 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


polite Frenchman even in the midst of war’s 
alarms. 

“ Perhaps we might be able to give you much 
valuable information in return for a favor! ” 
said Bob, trying to fill his manner with mys¬ 
tery, so as to further excite the curiosity of the 
border adventurers, always eager for gain. 

He saw that they began to show some inter¬ 
est; for Jacques and Armand exchanged 
glances, with raised eyebrows. It was as if 
one said to his comrade: “ Shall we listen to 
what he has to say! ” and the other by a nod 
announced that it would be as well, since they 
had nothing to lose. 

“ Bob, what would you do! ” gasped the hor¬ 
rified Sandy, actually believing that, in his des¬ 
pair, his brother meant to reveal some weak¬ 
ness in the defences of the white settlers, or 
betray the secret code by which they expected 
to summon assistance in time of need. 

“ Be still! ” hissed Bob, between his teeth, 
for he saw figures creeping closer, making no 
more noise than so many snakes might have 
done; and Sandy, utterly confounded by this 
strange attitude of the other, shrank back ap¬ 
palled, fearing lest Bob had indeed lost his 
mind. 



THE TABLES TURNED 


247 


“ Listen for a minute to me, Lacroix,’’ the 
young pioneer went on, as he held the attention 
of the four men. “ Perhaps I could tell you 
where much of this same precious ore might be 
found. Look well at it, and say whether or not 
it is true gold! ” 

He had taken something from his pocket, and 
now tossed it across to the nearest man, who 
chanced to be Armand. The latter dextrously 
caught the object, which he immediately began 
to examine with the eyes of greed. 

“ Throw some small wood on ze fire, so that 
I may haf more light! ” he exclaimed; “ and 
ze rest of you keep an eye on ze young cubs zat 
zey do not run away. Sacre! can I belief my 
eyes? What is zis I see? ” 

Sandy caught his breath. For the first time 
there flashed through his mind something of the 
truth with regard to Bob’s sudden inspiration. 
He realized that his shrewd brother must be 
fighting for time. 

That little piece of ore containing the spark¬ 
ling gold grains had often lain in his own palm, 
for Bob had carried it many years. Originally 
it had come from the mountains of North Caro¬ 
lina, where some of the settlers were engaged 
in a crude method of mining in the streams and 



248 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


rocky gullies. A returned Virginian, who had 
gone there to nurse his sick brother, brought 
some of these specimens with him, and one had 
been given to Bob. 

And now it was playing the great part for 
which perhaps it had so long been reposing in 
the pocket of the young pioneer. 

Meantime Larue, having caught up a hand¬ 
ful of tine wood, and cast the same upon the 
smouldering council fire, so that it flamed again 
briefly, hastened to lean over the shoulder of 
his shorter comrade. His hungry eyes feasted 
upon the glittering object which Armand held 
in the hollow of his hand. 

“ Can it be posseeble zat it ees real gold? ” 
he asked, with a quiver of greed in his harsh 
voice. 

“ Take eet and see, Jacques ,’ 1 replied the 
other, thrusting the object upon his companion, 
as though eager to have his own opinion 
verified. 

Immediately the other, having examined the 
bit of ore, about which there could be no pos¬ 
sible doubt, raised his bloodshot eyes, and sur¬ 
veyed Bob almost fiercely. And the boy knew 
then and there that his trap had worked; for 
he had chained the attention of the four French- 



THE TABLES TURNED 


249 


men, while closer and closer crept those who 
were coming through the bushes toward the 
opening. 

“ Haf you more of ze same stuff? ” de¬ 
manded Jules. 

“ Not here,” replied Bob, coolly. “ I would 
not be apt to carry it along with me when start¬ 
ing out on such an expedition as this. But I 
give you my word I can tell you where it comes 
from, and where much more of it lies, waiting 
to be picked up.” 

The covetous eyes of the crafty pair sought 
each other; and then the two exchanged nods. 
They had swallowed the bait, gorged it in fact; 
but Bob knew that he must try to prevent 
their feeling the hook until he was ready 
to strike. 

“ What is zis you tell us, hey? ” Larue con¬ 
tinued craftily. “ Zat if we let you go free, you 
take us to ze place where we can peek up much 
of zis same yellow sand in ze rock? But how 
we know you keep your word? S’pose we hold 
one like hostage till time come zat you carry 
out promise? ” 

Bob turned to his brother, at the same time 
giving him a sly wink. 

“ What say you to that, Sandy? ” he asked. 



250 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Would you agree to stay with Larue and his 
friends while I carry out our little plan; and 
then, later on, they would set you free, after I 
had led them to where they might find more of 
this? ” 

And Sandy, beginning to realize the value of 
passing seconds, pretended to carefully weigh 
the importance of the proposition before reply¬ 
ing. Finally, after the Frenchmen had begun 
to move restlessly, as they kept their eager eyes 
fastened on him, Sandy nodded his head. 

“ Whatever you think best, that will I do, 
Bob? ” he said, slowly. 

“ Zat is well, young monsieur,’’ chuckled 
Jacques, rubbing his hands together, as if 
greatly pleased. “ Parbleu! it may be zat we 
shall yet be able to make arrangements satis¬ 
factory to both. If you rescue ze young ma’m- 
selle, we are to be told ze secret; if, on ze uzzer 
hand, you fail, still ze one who is wiz us 
shall lead us to ze fine mine. It ees a bar¬ 
gain! ” 

So delighted were the four men over the pros¬ 
pect, that those who were supposed to be watch¬ 
ing the boys allowed their rifles to sag a bit. 
Bob was running a hand through the pockets of 
his clothes, as though eagerly searching for 



THE TABLES TURNED 


251 


something else, and of course every eye was 
riveted on liis movements; which was the very 
object he had in mind. 

Suddenly, and without the slightest warning, 
there was a rush of feet. The four French 
trappers whirled about with the intention of 
putting up a stout resistance, but it was too 
late. They had been caught napping! 

The guns were torn from their grasp, and 
hurled to the ground. Instantly they found 
themselves staring into dark muzzles of guns 
held in steady hands, while back of these 
weapons appeared the faces of Simon Kenton, 
Pat O’Mara and one other woodranger. Nor 
was Blue Jacket missing, for he stood in plain 
sight, with an arrow fitted to his bowstring, and 
drawn nearly to the flint barb, as he aimed 
straight at the heart of Larue. 

“ Make the slightest noise, and you shall 
surely die! ” exclaimed Kenton, in a stern 
voice, that had its effect upon all the French¬ 
men. 

Meanwhile Bob and Sandy had taken advan¬ 
tage of the opening to leap forward and recover 
their own weapons, which were instantly lev¬ 
elled at their enemies. Thus encompassed on 
all sides it was little wonder that the French 



252 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


trappers were ready to throw up their hands, 
and admit defeat. 

u History has a way of repeating itself, La¬ 
croix,” said Kenton, with a laugh, as he started 
to bind the hands of the borderman with tested 
thongs made from the toughest of elk hide. 
“ Once before I had the pleasure of stopping 
your little game when you would oppress these 
two boys. Mark well what I say, for the next 
time you raise a hand against them, the crack 
of a rifle will seal your doom! Two warnings 
spell the end.” 

“ But what would you do wiz us? ” de¬ 
manded Larue, as he saw that each of his com¬ 
panions was being triced up in the same fashion 
as himself; since Pat and the remaining 
scout were experts in the art of applying 
bonds. 

“ That we do not know just yet,” returned 
the borderer. “ But, if you accept your cap¬ 
ture as the fortunes of war, and do not try to 
escape, there will be no harm befall you.” 

Bob and Sandy were no longer filled with de¬ 
spair. Like magic their condition had changed. 
Instead of being prisoners in the hands of these 
cruel French trappers, and threatened with the 
fate that so often came upon those falling into 



THE TABLES TURNED 


253 


the hands of the warring Indians, they were 
once more free. 

Better still, they had found good friends in 
Kenton, Pat O’Mara and the third scout, so 
that the chances of their daring mission being 
carried out were more favorable than ever. 

“ Pat has told us about the trouble that has 
come upon you, Bob,” Kenton said, as he shook 
hands with each of the boys in turn. “ And we 
all feel for you. Our object in coming here has 
now been accomplished, since we have listened 
at a distance to what Pontiac said to the chiefs 
at the grand powwow here. If we can help you 
rescue little Kate, we stand ready to lend a 
hand.” 

Sandy’s face fairly beamed with joy. As we 
know, he entertained a feeling bordering on 
worship for the gallant young woodsman, 
Simon Kenton, who in his opinion was a greater 
hero than Colonel Boone himself. What Ken¬ 
ton said, therefore, counted heavily with Sandy; 
and, when the reckless borderer thus gave his 
promise to assist them in their work, the boy 
believed success was assured. 

Not so Bob, who was accustomed to weighing 
things more seriously before making up his 
mind. He knew of the countless difficulties they 



254 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


would have to meet, both before they effected 
the rescue of Kate, and afterward, when the 
whole country near the Great Lakes would be 
overrun with savage hordes, searching for the 
palefaces who had dared invade their territory, 
and even enter the great village of that most 
noted of Seneca chiefs, Kiashuta, the war 
leader, who had just made a new blood compact 
with Pontiac. 

Still, it was good to look on the faces of these 
three valiant hunters, and realize that no longer 
were two weak boys pitting their strength and 
knowledge of Indian tactics against the cun¬ 
ning of the Iroquois. 

Bob did not fail to shake the hand of his 
friend, Blue Jacket, who must have run across 
the three borderers soon after he slipped away 
at the coming of the hostile Frenchmen. 

Thus they now counted six stout souls, united 
in the determination to accomplish the object of 
the long journey, and bring little Kate back to 
the arms of the fond mother, mourning on the 
bank of the far-distant Ohio. 

To the hands of Simon Kenton willingly did 
Bob resign his cause, firm in the belief that, if 
any mortal could carry it to success, the bold 
borderer would. 



CHAPTER XXin 


THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 

“ We must get away from here right soon,” 
announced Kenton, after he had asked the boys 
a few questions concerning the adventures that 
had been met with on the long and dangerous 
journey across country from the Ohio to the 
region of the Great Lakes. 

“ Whatever you say, we will do only too 
gladly,” declared Bob; and Sandy nodded his 
head eagerly, to denote that he was of the same 
mind. 

“ Very good,” remarked the borderer, who 
had been thinking over matters even at the time 
he questioned the boys. “ And, as it happens, 
we know of a fine hiding-place not a great way 
off, where we can keep these fellows safe dur¬ 
ing the time we must stay around the Seneca 
town.” 

“ Troth! ” remarked Pat O’Mara, immedi¬ 
ately; “ ’tis a jewel av a place. They till me 
they have kept house in the same both toimes 
whin comin’ up till the counthry av the Great 

255 


256 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Lakes, to say phat the crafty ould sarpint 
Kiashuta might be about. By the greatest luck 
in the worrld I ran acrost Abijah Cook here, 
and was introduced to the cavern. ’Tis a 
grand place I’m tilling ye, me boys; and bad 
cess to the ridskin that iver discovers the 
same.” 

“ Come, let us depart without any more de¬ 
lay,” said Kenton, impatiently; for he knew 
that there was more or less danger lest one of 
the medicine men find some excuse to return 
to the sacred oak, and thus make a discovery 
that must cause the Seneca village to buzz like 
an enormous hive of bees, with scores of war¬ 
riors rushing forth to scour the whole neighbor¬ 
hood for signs of the bold palefaces. 

The four Frenchmen evidently did not enjoy 
the prospect by which they were confronted. 
Still, they were soldiers of fortune enough to 
accept things as they came along. Who could 
tell what the next shuffle of the cards might 
bring forth? The first often became last, and 
the under dog might find himself in a position 
to make terms as victor. 

That their air of indifference was assumed 
even the boys felt sure. They could detect the 
cautious looks cast around by the leaders of the 



THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 257 


Frenchmen, and understood how eagerly they 
would seize upon a chance to escape. 

Nor were the three white men in doubt as to 
what such a catastrophe might mean for them; 
since it must bring a mob of cruel foes howling 
at their heels like a pack of timber wolves eager 
for the blood of the wounded stag. 

Quitting the wonderful oak that had, perhaps, 
witnessed these strange councils of the red 
men for centuries past, all plunged into the 
forest. 

The French trappers were fastened together 
with a hide rope which Kenton happened to 
have wrapped about his waist. 

Guarded by men with ready rifles, and fol¬ 
lowed by the two boys and Blue Jacket, the 
prisoners knew they would show their good 
sense by refraining from any demonstration. 

Crafty Larue might have sought to delay the 
march by pretended stumbles, but he did not 
exactly like the manner of Kenton. Possibly 
he knew something of the fiery nature of the 
rash borderer, and feared to arouse his anger. 

As they thus threaded the mazes of the deep 
woods, winding in and out while following cer¬ 
tain trails made doubtless by wild animals, not 
a word was spoken. Kenton had warned the 



258 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


prisoners that talking would not be allowed 
under any circumstances. 

He himself wished to ask a score of impor¬ 
tant questions of the boys, knowing that, since 
they had been hidden in the oak tree during the 
holding of the great palaver, they must know 
much that he yearned to grasp. But he could 
wait until they were in a position of safety be¬ 
fore making his inquiries. 

“ T hope we are nearly there,” whispered 
Sandy in the ear of his brother, for, to tell the 
truth, the boy was nearly exhausted after the 
great strain of the last week, and then those 
two long hours up in the tree, when he could 
hardly breathe freely, for fear of betraying 
their hiding-place to the watchful enemy. 

Pat O’Mara was close enough to catch the 
low words, or else he guessed what Sandy must 
have said. At any rate, he dropped back a pace 
or two, and managed to remark in his genial, 
consoling way: 

“ Whist now, be aisy, me boy; ’twill not be 
long afore we reach our distination. And thin, 
by the powers, ye can rist as long as ye plaise. 
Do be lookin’ out that ye lave the trees alone, 
and save the skin av your nose,” he added, as 
Sandy, forgetting to be as careful as usual, in 



THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 259 


his desire to hear what Pat had to say, ran full 
into a sapling that he failed to see in time, and 
consequently suffered to the extent of several 
scratches on his face. 

It was almost marvellous the way those for¬ 
est rangers managed to pass in and out of the 
dense forest like so many shuttles in the hands 
of an expert weaver. The moon was utterly 
missing now, and even the light of the stars 
failed to penetrate beneath that thick canopy of 
matted branches overhead, so that they stalked 
along in almost complete darkness. 

But they were at home under such conditions. 
The woods were an open book to Kenton. He 
read the pages as readily as any Indian who 
ever crouched in the war-dance, or lifted his 
voice in the whoop of a foray. They used to 
say that Kenton possessed the eyes of a cat, so 
that he could see when other men were blind. 
And perhaps they were right, for he certainly 
led his little troop in and out with marvellous 
skill. 

Some ten minutes later Bob heard the music 
of a waterfall ahead. 

“ Phat do yees think av that? ” asked Pat 
CPMara a moment later, as they stood on the 
bank of a fairly large stream, and looked up at 



260 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the sheet of water that shot over the ledge 
above, to fall in a white tumbling mass into the 
pool at their feet. 

“ It is beautiful,” observed Bob, who, how¬ 
ever was wise enough to know that Kenton 
would not have brought them hither simply to 
admire the cataract. 

” Back of that sheet of water there is a cav¬ 
ern,” said the leader, as they stood on the shore. 
“ I have been many times to the great Niagara, 
and a friendly Onondaga chief took me back 
to the wonderful shelf of rock that is hidden by 
that wall of falling water. So I suspected that 
there might be just such a fine hiding-place 
here. Many months ago, when I was up in this 
country on a mission for Governor Dunmore of 
Virginia, I investigated, and found it to be true. 
Follow after me and you shall see.” 

The four prisoners held back. They did not 
like the idea of braving the wrath of those de¬ 
scending waters. Perhaps there may have been 
some superstitious fear connected with their 
hesitancy, for the Indians had legends con¬ 
cerning this same cataract, and believed that the 
spirits of the departed came hither, to sing 
again the war chants and songs of love that 
they had known when on earth. 



THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 261 


But there was nothing left for the Frenchmen 
to do hut obey, when those grim keepers urged 
them on. Life was sweet, even to such reckless 
rovers, and so, overcoming their reluctance, 
they obeyed the directions given, and passed 
in safety behind the sparkling, water curtain. 

“ Keep against the rock, all! ” said Kenton, 
who was in the lead. 

Sandy stumbled; but, as usual, Bob was 
quick to throw out a helping hand, so that the 
other was saved a plunge over the edge of the 
rock, which must have resulted in a good duck¬ 
ing, if nothing more serious. 

“ Now stand still,” came the voice of their 
leader from a point close at hand. “ I have 
torches handy, and, as soon as I can get at my 
tinder, you shall have light. ’ ’ 

Presently, as they stood patiently waiting, 
holding on to the prisoners lest they be tempted 
to make a dash for liberty in the dark, they 
heard Kenton striking his flint against the steel. 
Then a tiny blaze sprang up, which in turn was 
communicated to a long splinter of fat pine, 
taken from a tree, they afterwards learned, 
that had been lately riven by a thunderbolt, and 
hence was scrupulously avoided by the Indians. 

When the torch lighted up the cavern the 



262 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


boys found that, owing to the formation of the 
rocks, it was next to impossible for any one out¬ 
side to see signs of human occupancy. Besides, 
should a Seneca warrior discover a strange 
weird glow behind the water curtain, he would 
very likely fall on his face in the full belief that 
the spirits were holding council there, and that 
the fire was not of this world, but from the land 
o? the great Manitou. 

u Here you can rest, my brave boys,” said 
Kentoii, kindly. “ We have plenty of meat, 
and there is no lack of fuel. The smoke of the 
fire escapes through crevices in the rocks above. 
See, yonder are beds of leaves and stripped 
hemlock. After we have eaten, and you have 
told me what you heard while hidden in the oak, 
you must lie down to rest. As to the rescue of 
Kate, we will make our plans later.” 

A fire was soon started, the same supply of 
pine wood doing service. And, under such 
singular conditions, the two young pioneers ate 
the first good meal they had enjoyed for more 
than a week. 

Afterwards Bob sat beside Kenton while the 
borderer plied him with many questions. Of 
course Bob was not always able to give as in¬ 
telligent an answer as he would like, since his 



THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 263 


ignorance of the Indian tongue had prevented 
his understanding much that had been said by 
Pontiac and the other head chiefs during the 
council; but Kenton, in his customary shrewd 
way, managed to guess at what was lacking. 

44 It is all plain to me, Bob,” he said, later 
on. 44 Pontiac is at his old game, and hopes to 
weld all the various tribes from the Alleghanies 
to the Mississippi in a grand confederation in 
favor of the French, whom he loves, and against 
the English colonists, whom he despises. The 
Sacs, his own people, the Pottawottomies; the 
Foxes; the Delawares; even the Illinois tribes 
he is sure of; also the Shawanees. He longs 
to add the Six Nations, or Iroquois, to the list. 
That is whv his silver voice is heard in the land 
of the Senecas,” he added bitterly. 

44 But the Iroquois are the friends of the 
English? ” Bob exclaimed. 

44 Yes,” Kenton went on, a frown mantling 
his fine face. 44 They have been, in the past; 
but the artful French have long tried to under¬ 
mine this old established friendship. They con¬ 
stantly seek opportunities to make the Onon- 
dagas, the Oneidas, the Mohawks, the Cayugas, 
the Tuscaroras, and the Senecas believe that 
the English governor of Virginia is playing 



264 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


them false, and speaking with a double 
tongue. ’ ’ 

“ But they have not wavered, up to now,” * 
said Bob. “ Surely they hate the French so 
much that they will refuse to join with them 
in warring on our settlements, just because the 
lilies of France seek to run a line of trading 
posts all the way down the Mississippi? ” 

“ We believe that is true with most of the 
tribes; but the Senecas have acted in a sus¬ 
picious way,” returned the borderer. “ That 
is why we two came up to this northern country. 
News reached Boone that Pontiac was sending 
his wampum belt to the Seneca chief, Kiashuta, 
with word that the owner expected to person¬ 
ally follow it up, and address a great gather¬ 
ing of the various tribes under the famous 
Seneca council oak.” 

“ If that was Kiashuta with whom Pontiac 
departed, I greatly fear he is leaning toward 
the teaching of the great plotter,” Bob de¬ 
clared. 

“ Yes, he has little love for the English, the 
more the pity,” Kenton added; “ but, left to 
himself, the Seneca would have been swayed by 
his fellow chiefs of the Six Nations. Now that 
he has heard the fiery, persuading voice of 




THE CAVERN OF THE WATER SPIRITS 265 


Pontiac, I fear he, too, will be ready to dig up 
the hatchet that has been buried these many 
years, and go with his young braves on the 
warpath, burning and slaying.’’ 

Sandy had already thrown himself down on 
some of the hemlock boughs, and was far gone 
on the road to slumberland. The warmth of the 
cavern, together with his more satisfied mind, 
and the good supper of which he had just par¬ 
taken, combined to make the lad very sleepy. 

Nor was Bob averse to following his example 
when he found that Kenton had no more impor¬ 
tant questions to ask. He did not inquire as to 
what plans the other might have already bud¬ 
ding in his mind, looking to the stealing of their 
captive sister from the clutches of the Senecas. 

Kenton was a man to be trusted when he had 
such a task on hand. He would sleep on it, and, 
with the eominer of another day, no doubt they 
might hear just how he expected to go about 
entering the village of the Senecas, and rob¬ 
bing Black Beaver’s wigwam of its latest ten¬ 
ant, the paleface girl whom the young chief had 
stolen to replace the daughter so mourned by 
the old squaw, his mother. 



CHAPTER XXIV 


kenton’s life with the Indians 

“ JtyusT we wait for night to come, Bob, be¬ 
fore we can make a move? ” asked Sandy, as 
he and his brother sat back of the water cur¬ 
tain that concealed the wonderful cavern dis¬ 
covered by Simon Kenton. 

“ Whv. what else could be done? ’’ exclaimed 

* 7 

Bob. “ In the broad daylight, if we left this 
hiding-place, we might run across some hunting 
party of Senecas; or, perhaps, a group of other 
Indians returning to their own country. What 
a calamity that would prove, Sandy! ” 

“ Yes, I understand,” the younger boy re¬ 
plied, with a heavy sigh; “ but how slowly the 
hours pass. They seem like lead to me. Every 
minute drags as if it stood for ten. I’ve tried 
to sleep; but the terrible position of our poor 
sister haunts me. And then I get to thinking of 
father. What if it was his party that the In¬ 
dians attacked and killed.” 

“ We can only hope on, and trust that all will 
come out well in the end,” replied Bob, who 


KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 267 


only with a most determined effort was able to 
keep from falling into the same despondent con¬ 
dition that Sandy showed. 

Truth to tell, there was good reason for his 
courage to be put to the test. By some acci¬ 
dent Abijah Cook, the companion of Kenton on 
this long and hazardous trip to the country of 
the Great Lakes, had overheard some Indians 
talking, while he lay concealed in a dense 
thicket near the borders of the Seneca village. 

Among other things which they discussed, 
was the information that a party of palefaces 
travelling eastward had been taken by surprise, 
and utterly wiped out of existence. Their 
scalps even then adorned the lodge-poles of a 
Shawanee village far to the southeast. 

It was true that the one who carried this 
news had claimed that the party numbered a 
round ten, as many as the fingers on both hands, 
but Bob knew how such a thing might easily be 
stretched in the telling, and, while he pretended 
to scoff at the idea of their father’s little party 
having fallen victims to the treachery of the 
red men, deep down in his heart he was con¬ 
scious of a terrible chill every time his thoughts 
turned that way. 

“ But how is it we do not see our good friend, 




268 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 

Blue Jacket? ” continued Sandy. “ He is not 
the one to desert us in suck a terrible time as 

this . 1 ’ 

ii Never! ” exclaimed Bob, positively. 
“ Blue Jacket is faithful to the death. You 
do not see him just now because Kenton sent 
him to visit the village, and find out how the 

land lies.” 

“ But dare he enter there, with Pontiac and 
all those other chiefs from distant tribes still 
present as guests of Kiashuta? ” asked Sandy, 
puzzled. 

“ Why not,” answered his brother, “ when 
that is the very thing to make his coming seem 
perfectly natural. Blue Jacket is known as a 
coming man in his tribe. Some day, if he li\es, 
he will become famous, and, Sandy, although I 
am sorry to say it, outside of our family I do 
not believe Blue Jacket loves the whites any too 

much.” 

“ No,” declared Sandy, quickly; “ he has 
lost several dear relatives by the guns of the 
settlers. He was even engaged in trying to 
wipe out our little caravan at the time we saved 
his life, and won his eternal gratitude. I see 
now what you mean, Bob. He can enter the 
village of the Senecas, saying that he was on a 


KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 269 


mission for his far-away tribe, and, learning 
of the grand council, stopped to meet Pontiac.” 

4 4 And to learn what the outcome of the grand 
palaver had been, so he might carry the news 
with him to his own people. I think he must 
be known to some of the other chiefs, who would 
vouch for him — Long Coat, the Delaware; 
Turtle Heart and Bald Eagle, of the same na¬ 
tion; and even Silver Heels, who, like our 
friend, is a full-blooded Shawanee. I am only 
worried about one thing, Sandy.” 

44 Tell me what that may be, then,” asked 
Bob’s brother. 

44 When Blue Jacket comes face-to-face with 
Pontiac,” the older pioneer boy went on, 44 will 
those far searching eyes of the great sachem 
look deep into his heart, and see that he has a 
double purpose in coming into the village? 
They say he has terrible eyes, that can read the 
secrets of the heart like the pages of a book.” 

44 But Blue Jacket really has no cause for 
fear! ” Sandy exclaimed. 44 His heart is with 
the plans of Pontiac, only, in this case, he would 
try and save our little sister to us.” 

44 But,” Bob continued, shaking his head seri¬ 
ously, 44 think what would happen to him if 
they knew he had been hidden in the sacred 



270 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


oak, and assisted two palefaces to overhear the 
council! ” 

“ Well, they are not going to know that, for 
a while at least,’’ declared Sandy; “ unless one 
of our prisoners happens to get away. We 
must make sure that so great a disaster does 
not occur.” 

“ Surely. But here is Simon Kenton coming 
to join us. I have wanted to ask him many 
things about the village of the Senecas, where 
our Kate is a prisoner, and perhaps, while we 
sit here, waiting for Blue Jacket’s return, he 
may give us some account of what he has seen 
among the lodges of Kiashuta.” 

The borderer threw himself down beside 
them. 

“ What were you two talking about just 
now? ” he remarked, smiling in his pleasant 
way, for Kenton was a most agreeable young 
fellow, with winning manners that made him 
many friends, even though Boone looked upon 
him as a firebrand because of his extreme reck¬ 
lessness in fighting the Indians. 

“ I was just saying to Sandy that, since you 
have been in the Seneca village several times, 
you might tell us some of the things you saw 
there. Is it a very large place; are the Senecas 



KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 271 


feeling bitter against the white settlers; and 
what do they do when not on the warpath? ” 

“ Both times that I was among the Seneca 
lodges it was in disguise,” smiled Kenton, al¬ 
ways ready to give information when it lay in 
his power. “ A friendly Indian decked me out 
in paint and feathers, and, as I speak the lan¬ 
guage almost as well as one of the natives, I 
had little difficulty. I was supposed to be a 
strolling Cayuga, and received as such.” 

“ But on this present expedition you did not 
venture to go in among the lodges, because of 
the added danger, I suppose? ” Bob asked, 
deeply interested. 

“ Yes,” Kenton continued; ” one night we 
stole past the guard, and scouted around; but 
the dogs got scent of us, and we found it best 
to leave in a hurry. There was more or less of 
a row; but the Indians doubtless believed that 
it had only been some bold wild animal that had 
invaded the village in search of food. We eas¬ 
ily covered our tracks, and, after that, decided 
to simply hang about, waiting for the coming 
of Pontiac.” 

“ Then you could not know anything about 
our sister, or the location of Black Beaver’s 
lodge? ” asked Sandy, in a disappointed tone. 



272 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


44 That is true,” came the hunter’s reply; 
44 but all that information we expect the 
friendly Shawanee chief to pick up right now. 
He knows his business, and, depend on it, his 
report will cover the ground.” 

44 I have always wanted to see the life of an 
Indian village,” Bob went on; 44 but so far the 
chance has never come. Sandy, here, was a 
prisoner once in a Shawanee camp; but, as he 
was shut up in a wigwam until we managed to 
get him away, he saw little of what went on. 
As for me, I only had distant views of the place, 
and my curiosity was far from satisfied.” 

44 And, on my part, I know the life of the 
Indian almost as well as I do that of my own 
kind,” said Kenton, thoughtfully. 44 Many 
times have I spent a week among them, study¬ 
ing their ways, which have always had a strange 
fascination for me. Yes, one old chief was de¬ 
termined to adopt me, and I even had to steal 
away from his village as though I were a thief. 
I have hunted with the red men; watched their 
several dances in the seasons; learned many 
of their secret ways of curing skins, and drying 
meat for winter use; studied the magic that 
their medicine men pretend to employ in heal¬ 
ing the sick, and casting out devils by all sorts 



KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 273 

"l* • « m ' 

of incantations and rattling of sacred gourds. 
Once I even assisted in securing the venom of 
the rattlesnake, which was to be used in poison¬ 
ing the flint arrowheads they expected to use 
against their foes.” 

“ I have heard of that more than once, but 
never met any one who had really seen how it 
was done,” exclaimed Bob. 

“ Then I will tell you,” Kenton immediately 
remarked; “ for, after all, it is a very simple 
operation, though terrible enough. When all 
preparations have been made an extra large 
rattlesnake is found and brought to bay. As he 
rests in his coils they proceed to provoke him, 
by prodding with poles, until he is desperately 
angry, and launches his flat head out again and 
again, while his rattles buzz like a locust in the 
bush. ’ 9 

“ Oh! we have come across many a rattle¬ 
snake,” observed Sandy, “ and have fully a 
dozen rattles at home to show for it. But they 
always give me a creepy feeling. I just can’t 
help jumping every time I hear that dreadful 
warning . 9 9 

“ Having enraged the snake enough,” Ken¬ 
ton went on, “ a piece of liver is fastened to 
the end of a pole, and this is thrust up close to 



274 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


the coiled rattlesnake, which strikes hard and 
often at the meat. Later on this is allowed to 
turn green with the virus, and in this way a 
supply of poison is secured. But we ought to 
feel glad, boys, that the custom of poisoning 
arrows or spear points is as a rule frowned 
down upon by nearly all the tribes, as being too 
terrible. For, say what you will, I have found 
that there is a certain sense of honor among 
the redskins.” 

“ Yes, we ought to be glad that is so,” de¬ 
clared Bob. “ I’ve known quite a few who re¬ 
ceived wounds from arrows shot from hickory 
bows in the hands of Indians, and, had the tips 
been dipped in poison, they would not now be 
alive to tell the story/’ 

“ And I myself could show you marks where 
the feathered barbs have torn my flesh,’’ went 
on the young borderer, calmly. “ After watch¬ 
ing that operation with the serpent I was more 
than a little uneasy the next time I received a 
wound. But the red men themselves long ago 
frowned down upon such a terrible process, so 
we have little to fear in that quarter.” 

“ Then it will be necessary, if Kate is res¬ 
cued, that the village be entered under cover of 
darkness? ” asked Bob. 



KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 275 


“ Without doubt that will be our plan,” said 
Kenton. u I have been thinking it over, and 
arrived at a conclusion.” 

i 1 Oh! please let us hear it! ” exclaimed 
Sandy, eagerly. 

“ We must wait for a windy night, as well as 
a dark one,” the frontiersman went on. “ The 
wilder it is, the more chance we have for suc¬ 
cess, because we must set fire to the lodges, and 
start a fierce blaze, so that during the excite¬ 
ment, the girl can be taken away. After they 
have put out the flames the Indians may believe 
that Kate has just fled in fear of the dan¬ 
ger. ’ ’ 

“ I understand what you mean,” cried Sandy, 
“ and it strikes me that it is a wonderful plan. 
It must succeed; only I’m sorry that we have 
to wait. A windy night may be a long time in 
coming; and how can we hold back? ” 

“ Oh! at this changing season of the year 
there are few times when the wind does not 
blow, more or less,” returned Kenton, reassur¬ 
ingly. “ Perhaps it may be to-night for aught 
we know.” 

“ Don’t I just hope so,” said the boy. “ But 
I wish you would let us go with you into the 
village. ’ ’ 



276 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ I’m afraid that might be taking too many 
risks / 9 returned the borderer. 44 However, we 
will see, later on. At least, I mean to ask Blue 
Jacket to help me rig both of you out in paint, 
so that, in case you are seen, discovery would 
not necessarily follow.” 

“ Oh! we have more than once done the same 
ourselves, when playing Indian,” said Bob, 
readily; “ and it will not be so hard to carry 
out the part. But I trust that we may be given 
a chance to see what the village of Kiashuta 
looks like, while we wait for you to set the fires, 
and carry our sister off. ’ ’ 

“ Sandy, if you do not mind, it is about time 
we had something to eat,” remarked Kenton, 
turning with one of his rare smiles to the 
younger pioneer lad. “ The fire is smoldering, 
and can be readily rekindled with a handful of 
small stuff. This inaction does not keep one 
from feeling hungry, it seems.” 

So Sandy, always ready to do his duty, scram¬ 
bled to his feet, and started toward the other 
side of the wide cavern, stepping over the figure 
of Abijah Cook, who was making up for lost 
sleep while he had the chance. 

Pat O’Mara had gone off on a hunt for the 
day and had not returned. 



KENTON’S LIFE WITH THE INDIANS 277 


Five seconds later and the voice of Sandy 
rang out in wild alarm. 

“ Bob! Kenton! make haste, or he will get 
away! It is Armand Lacroix, and he has 
slipped his bonds! See, he is making for the 
shelf! Oh! stop him, somebody! 9 ’ 



CHAPTER XXV 


A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 

Even while Sandy was shouting these thrill¬ 
ing words, a figure flitted past Bob and Simon 
Kenton. It was the agile Frenchman, and he 
was making at full speed for the shelf where the 
exit of the strange cavern lay. 

Abijah Cook, aroused by the cries, scrambled 
to his feet, being doubtless under the impres¬ 
sion that they had been attacked by a large 
force of the dusky enemy, against whom his 
hand had been pitted in continual war¬ 
fare. 

There was a collision, and the borderer meas¬ 
ured his length again on the stone floor of the 
cavern. The fleeing form of Armand Lacroix 
was just glimpsed as he shot around the corner 
of rock that lay between the rear part of the 
cave and the waterfall. 

For once Kenton did not happen to have his 
rifle with him, since he had no reason to dream 
that he would need it. His first act had been to 
leap wildly forward in the hope that he might 

278 


A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


279 


yet snatch the weapon up before the French¬ 
man could vanish beyond the outcropping of 
rocks. 

Bob had seen that, when Lacroix regained his 
feet after his collision with Abijah, he held 
something in his grasp that had not been there 
before. It was the weapon of the big borderer, 
which doubtless the cunning French trapper 
had made up his mind to snatch up even before 
he started to escape. 

Kenton knew just where his own rifle was 
leaning against the wall, and, as he reached the 
spot, he snatched it up with a single movement. 
Then he went flying after the figure of the 
Frenchman, leaving the two boys dumb with 
fear lest their plans were now doomed to utter 
defeat. 

Larue and his two companions had witnessed 
with mingled feelings this dash for liberty on 
the part of Lacroix. They exchanged many low 
mutterings among themselves, and, while 
neither of the boys could understand much 
French, they felt sure that Larue was furious 
because the other had not waited to cut their 
bonds before dashing off, and thus giving them 
a chance to escape also. 

“ Oh! what if he gets clear away? ” said 



280 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Sandy, when several minutes had passed, and 
Kenton did not return. 

44 I hope that may not be,” Bob remarked be¬ 
tween his set teeth. 4 4 For his first act will be 
to bring the Senecas against us, and, even if 
we managed to escape, think of what Kate’s 
fate would be.” 

44 Hark! ” cried Sandy, gripping his 
brother’s arm convulsively; 44 did you hear 
that, Bob? ” 

44 Surely,? replied the other, endeavoring to 
control his anxiety as best he was able. 44 It 
was the report of a gun without a doubt; 
though, under here, sounds come but faintly.” 

44 Yes, but mark that there was only one 
shot! ” continued Sandy. 44 Whoever fired 
that did not miss. If it was Kenton, then we 
have no longer any need of fear lest we be be¬ 
trayed; but, should it have been Armand La¬ 
croix, perhaps we have lost our best friend, 
and the whole frontier will mourn the death of 
brave Simon Kenton.” 

They sat there waiting. The roar of the 
waterfall was the only sound that came to their 
ears. Both of them gripped their guns in nerv¬ 
ous hands, and had no heart to exchange further 
words. 



A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


281 


“ Some one is coming,’’ whispered Sandy, 
suddenly. 

11 Yes,” his brother added, as he raised his 
musket so as to be ready for any emergency; 
‘ ‘ I, too, saw a shadow flit past that bright spot 
on the wall. Oh! ” 

Kenton suddenly stood before them. The first 
thing Bob and Sandy noticed was that the 
young borderer carried two guns! They could 
easily guess the meaning of such a thing. 

“ Here is your rifle, Abijah! ” said the re¬ 
turned frontiersman, as he handed the weapon 
over to his big companion; then he coolly 
started to reload his own gun. 

“ But — Armand Iiacroix, what of him?” 
asked Sandy, appalled at the consciousness that 
one of those dark tragedies, so common on the 
border, must have just taken place. 

“ Fear no ill,” said Simon Kenton, calmly. 
“ He will not betray us. We are safe yet a 
while, my brave boys.” 

Nor would he utter another word at the time 
to satisfy the terrible curiosity of the lads. 
They could, however, easily picture what had 
happened — how swiftly the athletic young bor¬ 
derer had pursued the fleeing Frenchman, and, 
coming in sight of him, perhaps just as Armand 



282 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Lacroix was about to use his gun, had taken 
a shot himself. His well-known skill with fire¬ 
arms had stood Kenton in good stead once 
more. 

Later on, Abijah told them how Kenton had 
spent a few minutes in concealing all signs of 
the tragedy, so that, in case any prowling In¬ 
dians, attracted by the rifle shot, came around 
to ascertain what it meant, they would fail to 
learn anything. Even the trail of himself and 
the Frenchman from the waterfall to the scene 
of the final meeting was utterly hidden as Ken¬ 
ton backed once more in the direction of the 
hidden cavern. 

Sandy went on with his preparations for the 
meal; but his hand was not quite so steady as 
usual when he contemplated the tremendous 
consequences that must have followed, had the 
French trapper escaped. 

It was difficult to realize that Armand La¬ 
croix would give them no more trouble; that 
as he had lived, so had he finally died — by 
violence. 

They were yet eating, when silently Blue 
Jacket entered the cavern, grave as was his 
custom. Sandy was immediately wringing his 
brown hand, and plying him with a multitude 




A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


283 


of questions. So excited did the boy seem that 
finally Kenton spoke to him rather sternly. 

“ Let me find out what has been done, 
Sandy,’’ he said. “ Chief, did you discover 
where the wigwam of Black Beaver is situated 
in the village? ” 

“ It lies at further edge, close to region of 
rising sun,” replied Blue Jacket, readily 
enough; for, while he did not entertain the 
same feeling toward Kenton that he had in his 
breast for the Armstrong family, at the same 
time he recognized, in this friend of the great 
Colonel Boone, one who held the respect of all 
hostile Indians on account of his dash and valor. 

“ Good. That will be of value to us when we 
start the blaze going,” declared the borderer; 
“ because the chances are ten to one that the 
wind will be out of the west, and hence we can 
begin work far away from that single lodge. 
As the Indians rush toward the fire, to put it 
out, they will leave the eastern side of the vil¬ 
lage unguarded; then we can do what we have 
planned, and disappear.” 

“ Did you meet Pontiac? ” asked Bob, who 
could not forget his fears for Blue Jacket, 
should such an encounter take place. 

“ Blue Jacket ask see um,” replied the 




284 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Shawanee; “ when he exchange greetings with 
chief, Silver Heels, whom he knows. Some 
time, perhaps, Blue Jacket may yet follow in 
footsteps of great Pontiac. If any one man 
bind the tribes in big league to drive paleface 
back beyond the hills, Pontiac do it. And the 
heart of Blue Jacket beats true to his people.’’ 

“ Did you take note of the village, so as to 
know where to start the fire in case we are com¬ 
pelled to adopt that method of confusion, under 
cover of which Kate may be rescued? ” Kenton 
continued. 

He purposely brought the name of the girl 
into what he said, for he saw that the young 
Shawanee winced at mention of firing the vil¬ 
lage. Only his devotion to the Armstrong fam¬ 
ily would induce him to thus play a double part, 
and turn upon his own people. 

“ Blue Jacket did all that,” came the answer 
slowly, as though it were only with a great 
effort that the Indian brought himself to con¬ 
fess how he had spied on the Senecas, who were 
allies of his own tribe. 

“ You do not think Pontiac suspected you, I 
hope? ” asked Kenton. 

“ Not so. Blue Jacket hide feelings. No can 
tell what um think. Great sachem much pleased 



A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


285 


meet Blue Jacket. Say hear good report same. 
Bob, Sandy, get chance see sister. Nobody 
look, talk, Kate grind maize in stone. Come 
Jong again, find this on ground. Bring Bob, 
him read trail of crazy fly on bark! ’ 7 

To the astonishment and delight of the boys 
he suddenly produced a small strip of birch 
bark from his little ornamented bag where he 
carried his flints, together with the paints which 
were used to decorate his face when on the war¬ 
path, and various other things dear to the heart 
of a brave. 

Upon the smooth inner surface of the tiny 
roll of bark Kate had managed to write just a 
few words, using the juice of the poke berry, 
and perhaps a splinter of wood in place of a 
quill. 

“ Bob — Sandy, come and take me home to 
mother. Kate.” 

Tears came unbidden into the eyes of both 
boys as they saw these expressive words which 
had been inscribed on the bark by their dear 
little sister. They could read between the lines 
the dumb pain of a heart nearly broken by the 
extent of the terrible disaster that had befallen 
the child. 



286 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Sandy, less able to contain his feelings than 
his brother, did actually press the rude letter 
to his boyish lips; nor was Kenton apt to think 
any the less of the lad for this open exhibition 
of grief. He knew the tender love that bound 
together the three children of David Armstrong. 

“ Then you found a chance to talk with the 
maiden, did you, Blue Jacket? ” asked the bor¬ 
derer, turning again to the Shawanee messen¬ 
ger. 

“ Blue Jacket stand by watching her grind in 
mill. When no one look and none hear Blue 
Jacket tell how Bob, Sandy come all way from 
Ohio to save little papoose. Then drop piece of 
bark, so can make marks for Bob. After some 
time come again that way. Kate in wigwam, 
bark lie on ground with trail of wounded fly on 
back. It is well. She know we come soon. She 
wait and be ready. Ugh ! ” 

If they asked a score more questions they 
would hardly have received further informa¬ 
tion. In his own crude but effective way Blue 
Jacket had told his story. It needed no embel¬ 
lishment. The boys were able to mentally pic¬ 
ture just what had occurred, and it pleased 
them to think that at least Kate knew of their 


coming. 



A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


287 


She would be able to dry lier tears now, per¬ 
haps, with her heart thrilled with this new 
hope and expectation of a speedy rescue. 

“ I am glad to have a chance to help in saving 
so brave a girl,” remarked Kenton, as he fin¬ 
gered the little roll of bark on which Kate had 
sent her message. “ What would the pioneers 
be able to accomplish if it were not for such 
valiant mothers, wives and daughters! If this 
beautiful country is ever given over to the 
whites, more than half of the credit will belong 
to those who loaded the guns, while their men 
fired them.” 

In turn Blue Jacket was told about the fate 
of Armand Lacroix, for, of course, he quickly 
counted one less among the bound figures lying 
on the rocky floor. Not by the movement of a 
facial muscle did he betray what he may have 
thought; but Bob noticed that, when Kenton 
was not looking, the young Shawanee cast sev¬ 
eral glances of admiration in his direction. 
Such a bold man as Simon- Kenton could not 
but excite the envy and admiration of every ad¬ 
venturous spirit, be he white or red. 

So it was that Colonel Boone made many 
friends among the Indians, and, on one occa¬ 
sion, when he fell into their power, instead of 



288 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


putting him to death, they adopted him into the 
tribe. He even lived among them for months. 
Hearing that a heavy force was setting out to 
destroy Boonesborough, and rendered desper¬ 
ate by the fear that his friends and relatives 
might thus be murdered, Boone had escaped, 
and managed to rejoin his kindred in time to 
assist in the defence of the settlement he had 
himself started. 

The afternoon dragged along. Pat O’Mara 
came back from his hunt but brought no news. 
Poor Sandy did nothing, Bob thought, but 
growl, get up to walk around the confined space 
of the cavern, lie down again in a vain attempt 
to coax sleep to his eyes, and in all sorts of 
ways proclaim his impatience. 

But, by degrees, the time passed. They had 
no means of telling the hour save as the shadows 
lengthened; the sun-dial they depended on was 
the dropping of the glowing day god behind the 
western horizon. And, when it became appar¬ 
ent that the twilight had actually changed into 
darkness, Sandy breathed a sigh of satisfaction 
in his brother’s ear. 

“ Now it cannot be long! ” he declared. 
“ Once darkness settles over the land, and 
surely Kenton will bid us depart from this 



A BIRCH - BARK MESSAGE 


289 


place, which I never want to see again; for I 
have lived and grown old here. But, oh! I only; 
hope there will be plenty of wind! There, he 
has gone out to see how things look. Let us 
pray he returns to tell us the wind has risen.’’ 



CHAPTER XXVI 


THE WAR DANCE 

“ What of the weather? ” asked Sandy, as 
soon as Simon Kenton once more entered the 
cavern. 

“ So far there is good reason to hope,” re¬ 
plied the borderer, cheerfully. 

“ You could not make me happier than by 
saying that! ” cried the young pioneer, the 
anxious expression vanishing from his face. 
“ Then we can expect to get away from here, 
and start things moving at the village of Kia- 
shuta? May we go now? ” 

i ‘ Not for several hours,” said Kenton, 
shaking his head. 

i ‘ But the wind may die out by then; or some¬ 
thing else might happen to upset all our 
plans? ” urged the boy. 

“Not much danger of that, Sandy,” Bob 
put in. “ If the wind is blowing fairly now, it 
will grow stronger before it dies out.” 

“Well said, Bob,” declared the borderer; 

290 


THE WAR DANCE 


291 


“ for it is bound to do that, as I know from the 
look of the clouds. Blue Jacket, too, says a 
storm is brewing, though it may not break until 
early morning, so we need not fear that the 
lodges will get wet, and refuse to burn. My 
plan would be to start the fires just as the gale 
begins to sweep down. With the rush of the 
wind, and the roar of the flames, the reds will 
be half crazy with fear.” 

He made sure that Blue Jacket was not close 
by when he said this, because he knew how it 
would make the young chief wince. 

“ But what about your plan for dressing us 
all up to look like the Indians? ” questioned 
Bob. 

“ We may as well get at that now,” Kenton 
replied, promptly. “ I’ve some paints in my 
own ditty bag, and Blue Jacket will furnish 
the rest. As we do not mean to be seen at 
close quarters, it can be easily fixed. Come 
here, both of you, boys, and let me begin 
work. *’ 

In a short time the crafty hand of Kenton 
had daubed enough paint over the faces and 
hands of the boys to make them look like young 
warriors of the Senecas. So long as they kept 
well within the half shadows there would seem 



292 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


to be little danger that their real identity would 
be discovered. 

Boylike, they rather enjoyed the strange ex¬ 
perience. Sandy would have been even willing 
to venture into the village, and try to mingle 
with the crowd, had Kenton given his permis¬ 
sion; but this the borderer was not likely to 
do, since he knew what must follow. 

After that the rangers decorated one another, 
so that they too might pass for Seneca war¬ 
riors if they kept on their guard. 

“ You see,” remarked Kenton, as they sat 
there eating the evening meal, with only a torch 
fastened on the wall to give them light, “ one 
thing that is going to help us a heap is the fact 
that, just now, there are many strange Indians 
in the Seneca village, more than I have ever 
seen together, even in Old Chillicothe Town. 
We can pass for some of those who have jour¬ 
neyed far to listen to the words falling from 
the lips of the great Pontiac.” 

An hour later, Sandy was electrified by ob¬ 
serving that the borderer had given a signal to 
Blue Jacket, Abijah Cook and Pat O’Mara, at 
the same time rising from his seat, where he 
had been squatted cross-legged on the rocky 
floor. 



THE WAR DANCE 


293 


^ ‘ It is time! ’ ’ said Kenton, in a quiet tone, 
though not a muscle in his whole body gave evi¬ 
dence of excitement. 

44 At last! ” sighed Sandy, as he hastened to 
get on his feet, gripping his musket in his 
lingers. 

The borderer spoke a few last words, after 
which he made both lads pledge themselves to 
control their eagerness, and promise to obey 
his orders. 

Once out of the hateful cavern, and under the 
trees, the boys looked about them. They had 
had more or less experience as woodsmen, 
young though they were, and it was no great 
task for either Bob or Sandy to read the signs 
in the heavens. 

Clouds drifted across the sky, coming up out 
of the west, so that only once in a while were 
a few stars seen. The wind moaned fitfully in 
the trees, and gave promise of increasing in 
strength as the night grew older. Yes, just as 
Kenton had declared, there was a storm in pros¬ 
pect, though it might not break for several 
hours. 

Kenton immediately took the lead, though 
Blue Jacket clung to his side as if to advise in 
case the borderer needed assistance. But Ken- 



294 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ton was really as much at home in the forest as 
the red son of the wilderness. To him all signs 
were plain to read. He knew just where the 
Seneca village lay, and how long it was likely 
to take them to reach it. 

They had left the three Frenchmen bound in 
the cavern. Larue had pleaded to be released, 
vowing that not one of them would whisper to 
the Indians concerning the presence of these 
invaders in their midst. But Kenton refused 
to take their word. He did not have a very 
high opinion of these French Canadian trap¬ 
pers as a whole; and feared lest the fellow 
might betray them just to curry favor with 
Pontiac, with whom he had quarrelled at the 
council. Once they were well away, Blue Jacket 
would find some means of communicating with 
the Senecas, and tell them of the prisoners in 
the secret grotto under the cataract. 

In Indian file they started for the distant 
lodges of the Senecas. Winding in and out of 
the woods, as Kenton picked his course, they left 
the stream behind them. 

Two miles had been placed behind. The boys 
had known for some time that they were ap¬ 
proaching the Seneca town. Lights could be 
seen ahead, as of numerous fires. Sounds also 



THE WAR DANCE 


295 


came to their ears — voices of warriors chant¬ 
ing; the monotonous beating of the war drum, 
known as a tomtom; barking of excited curs of 
which every Indian village boasted its scores, 
most of them wolf-like in their savage nature; 
and even the loud laughter of half-grown In¬ 
dian boys, who were perhaps indulging in foot 
races, or some other form of rivalry. 

Closer still did Kenton lead them. Now and 
then he would stop, and hold a few words of 
whispered conversation with Blue Jacket, after 
which, possibly, his course might change a trifle, 
as he received advice. 

Finally they lay down, and began to crawl 
through the high grass and scattered weeds and 
bushes. The hearts of the two boys were throb¬ 
bing with intense excitement. They could see 
the numerous skin lodges every time they raised 
their heads, and it thrilled Bob and Sandy to 
realize that, in one of the many score before 
them, the little lost sister might even then be 
crouching, waiting in mingled hope and fear for 
her brothers ’ coming. 

Not once did either lad feel the slightest fear, 
yet they knew well what was likely to be their 
fate should the Indians discover their presence. 
Spies they would be deemed, and, after the 




296 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


gantlet running, they might expect death at the 
stake. 

Finally they hal +fk d in the last cover on the 
border of the village. Before them they saw 
scores upon scores of Indians, gathering as if 
in expectation of some great game or ceremony. 

The crouching figures found space between 
the drooping twigs of the bushy screen to ob¬ 
serve what was taking place. 

Kenton whispered something in the ear of 
Bob, who in turn passed the intelligence on to 
his brother. 

“ War-dance! ” was what he said, and both 
lads eagerly watched to see the wonderful spec¬ 
tacle of which they had so often heard, but up 
to now never found a chance to observe. 

A painted post had been driven into the 
ground in the midst of the cleared space. 
Around this the Indian braves and chiefs gath¬ 
ered, all facing toward a common centre. Pon¬ 
tiac and some of the visiting head men were 
given places of honor on a rude platform, where 
they could remain spectators. And the great 
sachem was doubtless pleased at being able to 
observe how his fiery words of exhortation had 
decided Kiashuta and his warlike Senecas to 
dig up the hatchet against the paleface invaders. 



THE WAR DANCE 


297 


Fires and torches illuminated the scene, cast¬ 
ing their deep red glare upon the dusky boughs 
of the surrounding pines, and upon the wild 
multitude of warriors who, fluttering with 
feathers, and bedaubed with bright paint, had 
gathered for the celebration of the war-dance. 

First of all Kiashuta himself leaped into the 
circle, brandishing his tomahawk as if rushing 
upon an enemy. In a loud voice he chanted his 
own past exploits, after the customary boastful 
way of an Indian, and then those of his de¬ 
parted ancestors, whose memory he honored. 

And, as he thus sang and shrieked, he acted 
the scenes over again, sending forth the shrill 
war-whoop with which the foe had so often 
been terrorized, throwing himself into all the 
postures of actual combat, striking the post as 
though it were an enemy, and then tearing the 
scalp from the head of an imaginary victim. 

Long before he had completed his part in the 
drama another chief had started in to excel 
Kiashuta; and, by degrees, still more, chiefs 
and braves, joined in the mad carnival of noise 
and movement, until the sight was one that 
neither of the young pioneers would ever forget 
as long as he lived. 

Finally, the whole assembly, as if fired with 



298 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


sudden frenzy, rushed together into the ring, 
leaping, stamping, whooping and shrieking. 
They brandished knives and hatchets in the fire¬ 
light, hacking and stabbing the air in their great 
excitement, while at intervals their cries arose 
to such a pitch that they might have been heard 
miles away over the lonely forest. 

Kenton had undoubtedly witnessed this stir¬ 
ring scene before, and possibly Abijah Cook 
may also have had that experience; but the two 
boys stared and trembled as the war-dance grew 
more and more violent. 

Finally the ceremony was over. Kiashuta 
himself gave a signal that hushed the mad car¬ 
nival of noise. Once again it was possible for 
those who lay back of the friendly screen of 
grass and bushes to distinguish individual 
sounds. 

Bob heard his brother give a long sigh, close 
to his ear. He knew how eager Sandy had al¬ 
ways been to witness strange sights and explore 
the untracked wilderness. It was easy to un¬ 
derstand that the boy must consider that he had 
just looked upon the most wonderful spectacle 
that he would ever see in all the days of his life. 

But they must not forget why they were 
there. It had been with no desire to look upon 



THE WAR DANCE 


299 


any of the ceremonial dances of the Indians 
that they had taken their lives in their hands, 
and crept close to the borders of the hostile 
village of the Iroquois. Kate — that was the 
magic name by which they had been led over 
hundreds of weary miles, scorning peril, and 
laughing at all manner of privation. 

Was the wind really strengthening, or did 
Bob dream it simply because he wished for such 
a thing to come about! Now that the racket 
had died away as suddenly as it had arisen, 
something like quiet settled down over the vil¬ 
lage, with its warriors exhausted by the vio¬ 
lence of their fierce, assumed fury. And Bob, 
listening, was sure the sound of the breeze in 
the tops of the near-by pines had gained some¬ 
thing in volume. 

He knew how the plans of Kenton had been 
laid. There was nothing for either himself or 
Sandy to do, save to remain where they were 
placed, and wait until their allies had accom¬ 
plished their undertaking. 

The white men were to start the blaze, be¬ 
cause it was asking too much of Blue Jacket 
to expect him to set fire to the lodges of his 
kind; but the young Shawanee chieftain had 
agreed, on his part, to steal Kate from the wig- 



300 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


warn of Black Beaver, and bring her to the ap¬ 
pointed rendezvous. 

But how long a time must elapse before the 
excited owners of all these painted lodges would 
settle down into quiet, so that operations could 
begin? Sandy knew he must again possess his 
soul in patience. He was just about to try to 
whisper something in the ear of his brother 
when he caught a low hiss. 

Undoubtedly Kenton himself was responsible 
for this warning. It signified that sudden dan¬ 
ger hung over their heads. Sandy flattened 
himself out on the ground as though he were a 
panther creeping up on its intended prey. And 
in doing this his ear came so closely in contact 
with the earth that he was enabled to hear the 
swish of bushes, and the low patter of feet upon 
the dead leaves in the forest behind them. In¬ 
dians were coming, running on the dog-trot for 
which they have always been famous! 



CHAPTER XXVII 


pontiac’s peril 

Closer came the footfalls. 

Bob almost held his breath, as he began to 
fear that the approaching Indians must actu¬ 
ally step upon them, when discovery would of 
necessity follow. It was a terrible moment of 
suspense. 

But Kenton had anticipated something of this 
sort, it would seem, when he led his little expe¬ 
dition into that patch of brush. The leading 
figure turned abruptly aside when just about to 
jump into the thicket, and those following at his 
heels did likewise. 

Bob, out of the tail of his eye, for he dared 
not even move his head, counted seven war¬ 
riors go leaping past. They gave vent to tre¬ 
mendous whoops as they thus burst into the 
village, and, from the answering cries, it was 
plain to be seen that they were envoys, sent 
from some distant Indian settlement to Pontiac. 

Again there was more or less noise and con- 

301 


302 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


fusion, with dogs barking, and many voices 
raised, asking what it all meant. The Indian 
messengers were taken into the heart of the 
village, where doubtless they secured an imme¬ 
diate interview with Pontiac and the head 
chiefs, after which they would be served a feast 
of baked dog, provided for the occasion. 

Once again Bob and his brother breathed 
easy. It had, however, been a narrow escape, 
and they felt that they had reason to feel thank¬ 
ful because discovery was thus averted. 

How Sandy would have liked to be able to 
whisper what was passing through his mind; 
but he had been warned against this by Kenton, 
and realized that silence would add to their 
chance of success. 

They no longer lay flat on the earth, for, with 
the change in conditions, Kenton led the way, 
once more crouching on his knees, so as to look 
through the little openings in the bushes. 

The hour was growing late, and by degrees 
they noted that the crowds had begun to dis¬ 
appear from the open spaces between the nu¬ 
merous lodges that went to make up the great 
village of Kiashuta and his branch of the Seneca 
tribe. Already had all the squaws vanished 
from sight, as well as the numerous papooses 



PONTIAC’S PERIL 


303 


and the half-grown boys who had been allowed 
to witness this wild dance in the hope that it 
might inspire them with a desire to emulate the 
fighting warriors as they grew older. 

‘ ‘ Listen — the wind! ’ 9 

Sandy could not help saying this into the ear 
of his brother, taking advantage of some noise 
close by, which he believed would muffle the 
sound of his voice. 

Bob had not been unmindful of the fact that 
the pine tops were now swaying before the 
breeze. They no longer sighed and moaned, 
but there was a decided “ swish 99 as they 
strove to hold their heads up before the rising 
gusts. 

Kenton, too, had taken note of this fact. He 
knew that it was time he and Abijah and Blue 
Jacket were going. They must make a detour, 
and yet arrive on the scene of their contem¬ 
plated labors before the storm broke. 

Bob and Sandy did not attempt to follow. 
Their duty was to lie still where they were 
until the alarm was given, and, with the flashing 
up of numerous fires, to retreat to a certain 
spot where five chestnuts grew in a clump. 
Here they would be joined, not only by the two 
scouts, but by Blue Jacket as well, and the latter 



304 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


was expected to bring with him the little captive 
girl, their sister Kate. 

Kenton and his companion would have a dan¬ 
gerous mission. They intended to apply the 
blazing torch to as many of the lodges on the 
windward side of the village as they possibly 
could, so that the fire would get such a start 
that it could not possibly be put out before much 
damage had been done. 

Of course, while they were thus running 
hither and thither, thrusting their firebrands 
this way and that, they took chances of being 
impaled on the spear of some furious brave, or 
feeling a tomahawk come crashing down upon 
their heads; but so often had they dared such 
risks that they gave it slight heed now. 

Left alone, the young pioneers began to feel 
the responsibility of their position. There, just 
before them, lay the great Indian village, with 
its hundreds of people, and its scores upon 
scores of lodges, in each of which rested those 
who were now declared enemies to the whites. 

True, there might be found a few whose skins 
were not red; but their hearts were even 
blacker than that of any Indian, for such rene¬ 
gades as Simon Girty hated their own kind as 
venomously as so many snakes would have done. 



PONTIAC’S PERIL 


305 


Driven out of the settlements along the border 
for various crimes, they had joined their for¬ 
tunes with the savages, and at all times dis¬ 
tanced the most cruel and crafty Indian in their 
treacherous conduct toward the pioneers. 

There was no one close enough now to catch 
a low whisper, so that Sandy, who felt that he 
must express his feelings or burst, took occa¬ 
sion to say in the ear of the other: 

“ Can you give a guess where Black Beaver’s 
lodge lies, Bob? ” 

Now, that was a matter to which the other 
had himself given more or less attention. When 
he surveyed the numerous skin shelters, with 
their three poles sticking up out of the hole at 
the top, where the smoke of the fire came forth, 
he had kept in mind what Blue Jacket told him 
about the symbolic and crude paintings 
with which Black Beaver had decorated his 
tepee. 

“ When the fires burned their brightest I 
thought 1 saw it away off yonder to the right,” 
lie answered, in the same cautious tone that 
would be utterly unheard five feet away, espe¬ 
cially while that breeze rustled the waving 
branches of the overhanging trees. 

“ Yes, that is to the east, and he said it lay 



306 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


there / 1 continued Sandy. “ But try to tell me 
which it was. Can you make it out still, Bob? ” 

“ I think so/’ replied the other, who knew 
that Sandy simply wished to feast his hungry 
eyes on the wigwam thus picked out, and try to 
imagine that he could see the loved form of 
little Kate beyond its painted walls. 

“ Look closely,” he went on, softly, “ and 
notice that large lodge with the buffalo and 
the hunter. There, a fire just blazed up, and 
you can see it plainly. Now, the third one be¬ 
yond has a double border of pictures on the 
skin. When the light was good I could see 
them plainly, and I am sure they are just what 
Blue Jacket told me Black Beaver had deco¬ 
rated his lodge with.” 

“ I see which one you mean, Bob, thank you.” 
And again Sandy sighed as he glued his eyes 
on that particular wigwam, which he believed 
contained the lode-star that had guided him 
through all the perils hovering in the woods 
between the Ohio and the Great Lakes. 

Then Sandy fell silent again. Several times 
he gave a quick gasp, as he fancied he caught 
some movement in the vicinity of that very 
lodge. Could it be their faithful friend, Blue 
Jacket, hovering about, and making ready to 



PONTIAC’S PERIL 


307 


strike when the wild alarm called the young 
Seneca chief hurrying from his lodge to assist 
in fighting the devouring flames? 

Bob believed that enough time had now 
elapsed to allow the others to reach the sta¬ 
tions assigned to them. That the blazing torch 
of the incendiary was not already in evidence 
he believed due to one or two causes. 

First, Kenton may have concluded that there 
were still too many warriors moving about in 
the village. They would be in a position to at¬ 
tack the holders of the firebrands, and, worse 
luck still, to put out the fire before it had gained 
sufficient headway. 

Then again, the storm, while growling in the 
distance, did not show signs of bursting upon 
the lake shore immediately, and its presence 
was very essential, in order to make the havoc 
so tremendous that the terrified Indians could 
think of nothing save the wild fight to prevent 
the whole village from going up in flames and 
smoke. 

‘ 1 Hist! yonder come two Indians this way! 
Be silent! ” 

Bob gave this warning because he did not 
know what moment his brother might attempt 
to communicate with him again, for Sandy al- 



308 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ways found it hard work to keep a still tongue 
in his head. 

Just as he had said, a couple of Indians were 
walking slowly in their direction, seemingly in 
deep conversation. 

Sandy nudged his brother in the side, and 
managed to whisper, despite the warning he 
had received: 

“ One is Pontiac himself! ” 

But Bob had before now discovered this fact 
for himself; also that the companion of the 
great sachem was no other than the warlike 
Seneca chief, Kiashuta. Perhaps Pontiac in¬ 
tended leaving the village at daybreak, in order 
to proceed on his travels, stirring up hatred in 
the breasts of every tribe he visited. And there 
were many things he wished to communicate 
to his red brother ere he went away. 

They came to a stand not more than forty 
feet away from the bushes behind which the 
two Armstrong boys crouched. Sandy had 
even feared lest they meant to enter the forest 
at that particular point, and in so doing might 
stumble on the pair of young spies hiding there. 

But Bob had seen that they were really head¬ 
ing for a log that happened to be lying in the 
open. Upon this they sat down, and for some 




PONTIAC’S PERIL 


309 


little time Pontiac continued to speak in low 
but earnest tones. It might be he was finding 
out just how many armed warriors Kiashuta 
could throw into the field at short notice, when 
the signal belt reached him that the confed¬ 
erated tribes had risen in their might. 

Bob wished they would finish their palaver, 
and depart. He feared that, should Kenton 
take a notion to start operations, the presence 
of these two chiefs so near the hiding-place of 
himself and Sandy might interfere with their 
withdrawal, according to the plans laid out. 

Again Sandy nudged him to indicate some¬ 
thing; but it was only that Kiashuta had arisen 
and hurried away, going direct to the large 
lodge in the centre of the village that marked 
the wigwam of the head chief. 

Pontiac remained seated, with his back al¬ 
most directly toward the spies. His air was 
thoughtful, as though the weight of many prob¬ 
lems rested heavily upon his mind. 

By this time the boys had grown accustomed 
to the sight of the most famous of all Indian 
chiefs. His presence no longer inspired them 
with that sensation of awe such as had marked 
their first glimpse of the magic leader, as he 
addressed the council under the sacred oak. 



310 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


* ‘ I hope he goes away soon! ’ ’ whispered 
Sandy, unable to keep utterly still. 

‘ ‘ Perhaps we can back out slowly, an inch at 
a time,” answered his brother; for the storm 
was muttering louder now, and seemed on the 
point of developing without much waste of time. 
He began to follow his words with action, wrig¬ 
gling backward, and being careful not to stir 
the bushes in the least. 

Sandy, realizing that his brother was actu¬ 
ally moving, also began to work his way back. 
An inch at a time, if continued for a certain dis¬ 
tance, would allow of their making better prog¬ 
ress, until they could finally rise to their feet, 
and glide off to the rendezvous of the five chest¬ 
nuts. 

He was alongside Bob, and still wriggling 
along, keeping his eyes in the direction where 
that kingly figure sat upon the log, when the 
older boy felt his fingers gripping his arm. 

Sandy did not utter a single word; perhaps 
he could not find his voice to do so, he was so 
shocked by what he had suddenly discovered. 
Bob, catching some of the same spirit, simply 
shut his hands tight together, and held his 
breath, while a low whispered ‘ ‘ Oh! ” fell from 
his parted lips. 



PONTIAC’S PERIL 


311 


Just behind the sitting form of Pontiac a 
bending figure was creeping, and an uplifted 
hand clutched a terrible club, which the 
would-be assassin undoubtedly meant to bring 
down with cruel force on the unprotected head 
of the war sachem. And to his intense astonish¬ 
ment Bob recognized in this creeping figure 
Jacques Larue, whom they had left tied hand 
and foot in the cascade cavern! 



CHAPTER XXVIII 


WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 

Sandy Armstrong was an impulsive boy, as 
has been shown more than once in these pages. 

He often acted on a sudden inspiration, and 
without weighing matters over in his mind. 
This disposition to do things on the spur of the 
moment was a part of his nature, and did not 
spring from the mere fact that he was a lad; 
for his brother Bob had no such failing. 

Kenton had seen it in Sandy, and it aroused 
a fellow-feeling in the breast of the famous 
borderer for the young pioneer, because he him¬ 
self had many times been taken to task by 
Daniel Boone for showing the same weakness. 

Sandy only saw that a scoundrel was creep¬ 
ing up behind a brave man with the intention 
of doing him a deadly injury. Little he consid¬ 
ered that Pontiac towered head and shoulders 
above every Indian foe the struggling settlers 
in the wilderness might ever know, and that his 
untimely death would really be a blessing to 
the entire white race. 


312 


WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 


313 


Horror filled his young soul at the dastardly 
nature of the revengeful Larue’s intentions. 
The pondering sachem was utterly ignorant of 
the presence of an enemy, as he sat there on 
that log, waiting for the return of the Seneca 
chief. Even then the French trapper was 
towering over the bent figure, his hands grasp¬ 
ing that club, as he summoned all his strength 
for the blow, meaning to make short work of his 
enemy. 

The public insult which Pontiac had put upon 
him doubtless rankled in the heart of the 
Frenchman. Making his escape from the cav¬ 
ern, where he had been left apparently securely 
tied hand and foot, he must have headed for 
the Indian village in order to betray the plans 
of the invaders. Then, suddenly discovering 
the great leader of the tribes seated there alone, 
an overmastering desire for revenge took com¬ 
plete possession of him. 

Bob was himself almost frozen with horror 
as he saw the drama that was being played 
there before his eyes. He wanted to shout out, 
and at least warn Pontiac, so that the chief 
might have a chance for his life; but somehow 
it seemed as though his tongue clove to the roof 
of his mouth. 



314 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Then came a loud report. It was so close to 
his ear that it almost deafened Bob; but he was 
conscious of the fact that his brother must have 
fired the shot. 

Sandy had indeed fired, just as he saw the 
burly Frenchman about to bring down his club 
on the unprotected head of the sachem. 

As we know, the boy of the Ohio river cabin 
was a splendid shot with that old musket which 
he carried; but even at such a time he could 
not find it in his heart to attempt the life of a 
white man, however much Larue merited such 
a fate. Consequently he endeavored to pre¬ 
vent the Frenchman’s crime by sending a bullet 
through his uplifted arm. 

Instantly all was confusion. It was as though 
that crash of a gun sounded the signal for an 
immediate upheaval. Larue’s arm fell to his 
side as, in a panic, he dropped the club, and 
tried to turn for flight. Pontiac was already 
on his feet, and, grasping the situation, a yell 
pealed from his lips as he flung himself boldly 
upon the back of the French trapper, bearing 
him to the ground, where they struggled like a 
couple of angry wolverines. 

Scores of braves dashed wildly from their 
lodges, some calling, others answering, and all 




WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 


315 

running hither and thither like a pack of hounds 
searching for a lost trail. 

Bob was dazed by what had happened. He 
realized that probably it meant the complete 
blocking of the bright plans which their friend, 
Simon Kenton, had arranged for the rescue of 
little Kate. 

Had Sandy been to blame? Should the reck¬ 
less boy have restrained his impulse to shoot 
down the wretch who would slay the great In¬ 
dian leader in cold blood? 

It was no time to ask such questions. They 
were themselves in great danger. The war¬ 
riors were constantly widening their circles as 
they ran, and at any moment one of them might 
discover the crouching figures of the young 
pioneers in the grass and weeds. 

“ Back out, Sandy! Quick, or all is lost! ” 
Bob managed to whisper hoarsely in the ear of 
his comrade. 

Doubtless Sandy realized how his act was 
likely to result. Had he been content to allow 
matters to take their course Pontiac would ere 
now have been hurried on his way to the Happy 
Hunting Grounds of the red men; and all this 
confusion avoided. 

It was too late for vain regrets. The thing 



316 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


was done, and all that remained for them now 
was to try to escape. If they could manage to 
get off undiscovered they might effect a re¬ 
union with the others, and hide in the forest, 
waiting for another opportunity to come. 

So they started to push backward, hoping 
that fortune might be kind enough to allow 
them to reach the thick timber, where it would 
be easy to glide away unseen by the keen eyes 
of the red searchers. 

Around Pontiac a dozen warriors had clus¬ 
tered. They seemed to understand that a des¬ 
perate effort had been made to kill the great 
sachem, whose words had so recently thrilled 
them in the grand council; for all accounts 
agree in saying that no Indian ever spoke as 
did this gifted orator, Pontiac. 

Larue was struggling in the hands of several 
furious braves. They would have made short 
work of the treacherous Frenchman only that 
the voice of Pontiac himself prevented his sum¬ 
mary execution. 

u Lay no hand on him in anger, warriors! ” 
he called out. “ Let him be taken to the strong 
lodge and there kept fast until your chief can 
decide his fate. It is the will of Pontiac; let 
none refuse to obey! ” 



WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 


317 


After that no one dared strike the prisoner, 
who was dragged away shrieking, and wildly 
defying the man he hated. 

All this excitement was in the favor of the 
two boys. It gave them a better opportunity to 
push further away from the dangerous vicinity 
of the log upon which the visiting sachem had 
been seated when so rudely disturbed by that 
shot. And it goes without saying that both lads 
wasted not a second of time in trying to gain 
the shelter of the woods. 

They knew that Kenton must have been dis¬ 
couraged in his plans by this unexpected hap¬ 
pening, because there came no sudden alarm of 
fire, though the wind was already strong enough 
to have answered his purpose. Perhaps he 
fancied that, through some unfortunate freak 
of fate, Bob and his brother had fallen into the 
power of the Indians; that heavy gunshot 
would seem to indicate as much, since few 
among the Senecas carried firearms. 

While all these things had happened very 
rapidly, and it could not have been more than 
three minutes since Sandy fired; still, the time 
seemed tenfold as long to the retreating boys. 
Finally they reached the shelter of the heavier 
timber, and breathed a sigh of relief. 





318 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


In those early days the settlers had a saying 
to the effect that “ a white man should not 
shout until he was out of the woods, nor an In¬ 
dian until he had gained their shelter.’’ When 
Bob and his brother experienced a sense of 
safety after finally reaching the timber, they 
counted without their host. 

Flitting figures were around them, though 
they knew it not, some of the Indians having 
hastened away at the first alarm, under the im¬ 
pression that it meant an attack on the part of 
the whites. 

These braves flattened themselves against 
the earth, and lay like logs until the boys, 
straightening up, started to glide away. Then 
there was a whoop, a sudden springing into life 
of the dusky figures, and, before either Bob or 
Sandy could make a single effort at self-de¬ 
fence, they were borne down under the weight 
of their enemies, who were not deceived by 
the paint with which they had covered their 
faces. 

With hearts as heavy as lead the brave boys 
were conducted into the village, now a seething 
volcano. Word had gone around of the base 
attempt on the life of the sachem who had 
long been the idol of so many tribes; and 



WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 


319 


looked upon as the leader sent by the great 
Manitou to drive the rash white men back into 
the sea whence they came. 

Every minute the indignation increased. 
They saw in the act a dark plot to cut them 
off from the leadership of the only general who 
had ever been able to make an alliance between 
a dozen tribes, and unite them against the com¬ 
mon enemy. 

The open space which, but a few minutes be¬ 
fore, had been entirely vacant, save for the 
presence of Pontiac and Kiashuta, was now a 
seething sea of jostling braves, waving their 
hatchets and knives, and demanding summary 
vengeance on the treacherous snakes who had 
crawled into their midst with such base designs 
in their hearts. 

Sandy shrank back, appalled at the terrible 
sight. Bob bore himself a little more bravely, 
though his heart, too, was cold with dread. 

“ Bob, forgive me! ” cried Sandy, filled with 
remorse because again had his hasty action 
brought them to the verge of disaster. “ I was 
a fool to do what I did; but I did not stop to 
think. I only saw that scoundrel about to kill a 
defenceless man, and something urged me to 
prevent the murder. I deserve all that is com- 



320 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


ing to me. If only you could be spared I 
wouldn’t complain.” 

‘ 4 Stop that sort of talk, Sandy,” answered 
the other, hoarsely. “ I am not worrying over 
what will happen to me. All I regret is that 
now Kate will not have any chance to escape. 
And poor mother will be heartbroken because 
all of her children have been taken from her.” 

“ Oh! fool! fool that I was!” moaned 
Sandy, bitterly. “ Father always warned me 
that some day my hasty nature would play me 
an ill turn. What do you suppose they will do 
with us now? Some of these braves look so 
ugly that I do not think we will ever live to see 
the sun rise again.” 

“ Wait,” said Bob, with a trace of encourage¬ 
ment in his voice; but whether he only spoke 
in this manner to comfort his younger brother, 
or because he really saw a sudden gleam of 
hope, Sandy could not guess. 

When Bob uttered this one word his eyes 
were fastened upon the face of Pontiac, who 
was thoughtfully surveying the prisoners. And 
perhaps it was something he saw in the coun¬ 
tenance of the renowned sachem that encour¬ 
aged the boy. 

Threatening braves pushed around them; 



WHEN ALL SEEMED LOST 


321 


tomahawks were waving in the air above their 
heads; and awful shouts sounded in their ears. 

Sandy closed his eyes, as though unable to 
face the doom which he feared was so close. 
Doubtless in that moment of suspense his mind 
flew to that dear cabin far away, where he knew 
his mother must be waiting every day for the 
safe return of her children, and praying that 
they might be spared to her. 

A groan burst from his lips; but it did not 
spring from fear of the fate that hung over his 
own head. 

‘ 4 Kate! Mother! Oh! Heaven help them! ” 
Sandy said, again and again. 

Still Bob watched the great leader. He 
seemed to. divine that, if help came at all to him¬ 
self and his brother, it must spring from Pon¬ 
tiac alone. And when he saw the chief suddenly 
push forward toward the struggling group, 
where the excited braves were jostling each 
other about, each anxious to have the glory of 
finishing the young captives, he had faith to 
believe that all was not yet over. 

Now the voice of Pontiac was heard again, 
and as before commanding that none dare to 
injure the prisoners until permission were 
given. 



322 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


He stood in front of them now, so close that, 
had Bob been free to use his arms, and dared, 
he might have put out a hand and touched the 
person of the sachem. Long and earnestly did 
Pontiac look them over. Wonder marked his 
face when he saw that they were but half-grown 
lads, striplings who had better have been safe 
in their cabin far away, rather than here in a 
hostile land, with a thousand mortal foes 
around them. 

Then Pontiac turned to the heaving crowd of 
painted warriors, with every wild eye fastened 
upon his face. 

“ These paleface boys carry no arms,” he 
said. “ Some warrior has the gun of each. 
Let them bring to me the shooting sticks, that 
I may examine them! ” 

And, as he heard these words, somehow the 
heart of Bob gave a leap for joy. 



CHAPTER XXIX 


THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 

“ What is lie going to do, Bob? ” demanded 
Sandy, who had opened his eyes, after a minute 
or so had passed without the expected blow, 
and who heard Pontiac’s demand that the guns 
of the prisoners be handed to him without un¬ 
derstanding what the meaning of the order 
could be. 

‘ ‘ Watch and see! ’ ’ replied Bob, in a husky 
voice, and without taking his eyes off the 
sachem a second. He himself, as yet, had only 
a vague suspicion concerning any benefit that 
might spring from this action on the part of 
Pontiac. 

Almost as in a dream, then, Sandy saw first 
one musket thrust out to the famous chieftain, 
and then the second. Pontiac examined them 
eagerly, and, after handling the gun belonging 
to Bob, once more gave it back into the posses¬ 
sion of the keeper. But, as he raised that which 
Sandy himself had owned, a look of intelligence 

flashed across the dark face of the Indian. 

323 


324 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


He even raised the musket to his nose as 
though to smell the odor of burnt powder that 
must have still clung to it after the recent dis¬ 
charge. Then he turned upon the two young 
prisoners. 

“ Yours! ” he demanded, his flashing eyes 
fastened on the astonished face of Sandy, just 
as though he had been able to read the nature 
of both lads in that single earnest look, and un¬ 
derstood how impulse swayed one more than 
the other. 

Sandy might have wished to deny all owner¬ 
ship of the weapon; hut somehow he was un¬ 
able to do so, with those impelling eyes fastened 
upon him. So, still unable to use his tongue, 
he simply nodded his head. 

“ You shoot at French trader! ” continued 
Pontiac. 

Another nod in the affirmative answered him; 
and then Bob saw a change begin to spread 
over the dark features of the chief. He looked 
at Sandy; but his brother failed to grasp the 
wonderful meaning of the miracle that had been 
wrought in their behalf. To his mind all 
this talk only served as a forerunner to the 
dreadful fate that was surely to be their 
portion. 



THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 325 


“ Why white boy shoot French trapper? ” 
asked Pontiac. 

Realizing that Sandy was unable to frame a 
coherent reply, Bob boldly took it upon himself 
to make answer. 

“ You ask why, great Pontiac? ” he said. 
u Because he could not lie there and see a cow¬ 
ardly snake creep up behind a brave man to 
strike him in the back. He sent his lead into 
the arm that held the warclub, and saved the 
life of Pontiac! 99 

Then, Indian though he was, the great Pon¬ 
tiac smiled. Perhaps he understood how these 
paleface boys must have known that, if the 
traitorous Frenchman had been allowed to carry 
out his will, it would have been much to the ad¬ 
vantage of the border settlements; but that 
Sandy, unable to control his impulse to rebuke 
such rank treachery as Larue exhibited, had 
been unable to hold his fire. 

Pontiac turned to the surging crowd of In¬ 
dians. He held up his hand, and every shout 
was stilled; even the murmuring ceased, such 
was his magnetic influence over the wild spirits 
of hot-headed young warriors whom their own 
chiefs could not restrain. 

“ Listen! ” he said, in a voice that reached 



326 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


easily to the further extremity of the gathered 
throng. “ Pontiac sat on yonder log. Your 
chief Kiashuta had left him to seek for some¬ 
thing that was in his lodge. In the mind of 
Pontiac many things dwell to give him cause 
for thought. He heard not the coming of the 
snake in the grass who crawled up behind, and 
swung aloft the club with which he expected to 
dash out the brains of a chief. 

“ Listen. In the bushes and the grass lay 
two paleface boys. They had guns. They had 
come many miles from their cabin on the run¬ 
ning water to the south. They had no reason 
to love Pontiac, who has ever been the enemy 
of their race; but they had hate in their hearts 
for a snake that could sting in the heel. So, 
quickly did this gun speak. The arm that was 
raised fell helpless. And then Pontiac closed 
with the treacherous Frenchman. 

“ Listen yet again, warriors. Had it not 
been for this paleface boy, where now would be 
your leader? How could Pontiac strike the 
flint that will make the whole border blaze with 
fires, if he lay here on this ground, dead? ” 

He looked around him as though expecting 
an answer; but not a single voice was raised. 
Slowly the truth was penetrating the brains of 



THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 327 


those who heard. They understood that, no 
matter what his motive may have been, the 
paleface boy had saved the famous chieftain to 
those who hung upon his every look or word, 
as though he had charmed them with his magic. 

‘ ‘ Release them! ’ ’ Pontiac continued, making 
an imperious gesture toward the warriors who 
were clutching the two lads; and immediately 
they hastened to obey his will. “ They belong 
to Pontiac; let one of you from this hour lay 
so much as a finger on them at his peril! ” 

When Sandy heard these words he seemed 
to regain his power of speech once more, for he 
clutched Bob’s arm convulsively as soon as he 
found himself free, and exclaimed: 

“ Bob, do you hear that? He says we are 
his prisoners, and that we will not be harmed! 
Oh! if only we could get him to give us Kate 
now, what a blessed thing it would be! Per¬ 
haps after all, Bob, my hasty nature did better 
for us than all the planning. Ask him if he 
will help us, won’t you, Bob? ‘ Strike while the 
iron is hot,’ father always says. Speak to him, 
now. ’ ’ 

But Bob held back, for he saw that the chief 
had more to say, since he was once again turn¬ 
ing toward them. To the delight of the boys he 



328 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


gravely held out his hand, white man fashion, 
for Pontiac had been brought up among the 
French, and knew almost as much of the white 
men’s ways as though he had been born a pale¬ 
face. 

“ We are friends,” he said, as he pressed 
each hand firmly. “ You have saved the life of 
Pontiac. Ask what favor you will, and, if it is 
in his power, so shall it be granted. First tell 
me what you seek, so far away from your 
home! ” 

a In a cabin, where the swift water runs be¬ 
tween the hills, lives our mother,” said Bob. 
“ Our father has gone over the big hill to Rich¬ 
mond to bring back with him some of the things 
a white woman needs. Besides my brother and 
myself, there was one child, a sweet girl, about 
so high,” and he held his hand below his 
shoulder to indicate that his sister was much 
shorter than himself. 

Pontiac bowed his head gravely to indicate 
that he understood what the boy was saying. 

“ One day there came some Senecas to the 
settlement,” Bob went on, eagerly. “ They 
held up their hands in the peace sign, and we 
met them as friends. They told us they had 
been on a long journey into Kentucky, to visit 



THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 329 


another tribe. They were without tobacco, and 
their stock of maize had dwindled low. We 
gave them of each, enough to last until they 
could reach their lodges on the Great Lakes. 

“ But one young Seneca, who bore the 
feather of a chief in his hair, looked long on 
the sweet face of the white girl. He remem¬ 
bered that in his lodge, far away, no longer the 
voice of his own sister was heard; and that the 
old squaw, his mother, mourned each day for 
the one who was not. 

“ So he made up his mind to steal the pale¬ 
face girl, and bear her away to the village of 
the Senecas on the big water to the north. 
'When my brother and myself were in the forest 
hunting for meat he stole our sister away. We 
have followed him from the rushing Ohio to the 
Great Lakes. Our sister is here. Will the 
great Pontiac keep his word by giving her back 
to our charge, and letting us depart for the 
cabin where a mother mourns? ” 

Bob knew how to put the case before the one 
who must be their judge, so that, as an Indian, 
Pontiac could grasp it readily; and he saw 
from the face of the other that he had suc¬ 
ceeded in his effort. When an Indian gives his 
word it is ever afterward sacred. 



330 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Listen! ” said the chief, impressively. 
“ Look around you. There are many Senecas 
here, braves and chiefs. Does the paleface boy 
see the one who took tobacco and maize from 
the white man’s hand, and then stole his 
daughter? ” 

44 Yes! ” exclaimed Sandy, finding his voice. 
“ I saw him just then, among those Indians 
yonder. There, he is trying to steal away; 
for he fears the frown of the great and just 
Pontiac. It is Black Beaver! ’’ 

The young chief, seeing that escape was use¬ 
less, returned, and, standing before Pontiac, 
folded his arms across his naked chest. Words 
in the Indian tongue passed quickly between 
them. Black Beaver seemed defiant at first; 
but presently he came under the persuasive 
eloquence of the marvellous orator. He let his 
chin fall on his breast, and finally, when Pon¬ 
tiac dismissed him with an imperious gesture, 
the subdued young chief stalked away, heading 
straight for his wigwam. 

“ When he comes back he will bring the 
white girl,” said Pontiac. “ She shall go with 
the brave young boys who have sought her so 
far; and not a warrior will lift a hand to do 
them harm. More than this, because of what 



THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 331 


you have done this night, you and your family 
are forever the friends of Pontiac. Danger 
and death will never come near your cabin 
while he lives. There will be a dead line drawn 
about it, and woe to the Indian who molests the 
friends of the chief. I have spoken! ” 

Loudly did his voice ring out as he said these 
thrilling words that would never be forgotten 
by either of the two lads as long as they lived. 
And far and wide would the command be sent 
that the little brood of David Armstrong was 
to be immune from all the perils of an Indian 
war, even though flame and destruction 
swooped down upon their nearest neighbor. 

“ Look! he is coming back, and our sister is 
with him! ’ ’ cried Sandy, unable to restrain his 
delight at sight of the one they loved so dearly. 

Black Beaver did not show any emotion as he 
drew near. He realized that, when Pontiac 
spoke, it was for him to obey. And as a true 
Indian, he was ready to accept the fortunes of 
war, no matter how it hurt. 

The Indians made a passage-way to allow 
them to approach. Pontiac himself took the 
trembling hand of the frightened girl, and led 
her to where her two gallant brothers stood 
with outstretched arms. 



332 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Weep no more, paleface girl. You are go¬ 
ing home to the white squaw who mourns in the 
cabin on the bank of the swift water,” said 
Pontiac, as he released her in front of the boys. 

Another instant and Kate, with a cry of joy, 
had flung her arms about the neck of first one 
brother and then the other, while Pontiac stood 
and watched the happy reunion without his 
face expressing the feelings that must have 
been struggling in his heart; for so has an In¬ 
dian been trained never to betray emotion. 

How like magic had the scene been changed! 
Only a few minutes before and poor Sandy was 
deeply dejected, in the belief that his hasty 
and ill-advised act had forever ruined their 
only chance for a rescue. And now they stood 
there, not only free, and with their dear sister 
given into their charge, but safe in the pledged 
friendship of the most powerful of all Indians, 
Pontiac himself. 

1L It seems like a dream, Bob! ’ ’ cried Kate. 
“ I can hardly believe it to be true. How did 
you manage it, you and dear Sandy? Oh! how 
happy I am to think that soon I shall see my 
own mother again! Not that Black Beaver has 
been cruel to me. He tried to be a brother after 
his way. I am sorry for him; but there is no 



THE WORD OF AN INDIAN CHIEF 333 


one can take the place of father, mother, Bob 
and Sandy.” 

“ In good time yon will hear it all, Kate,” 
said Bob. “ It is a strange story. But I won¬ 
der whether Pontiac will extend his favor to 
our good friends who have come with us to try 
and influence Black Beaver to give us back our 
sister. The whites and the Senecas are at 
peace, for the hatchet has not yet been dug up 
between them, so we hoped to win Kiashuta to 
our side; to have him say that Black Beaver 
had done wrong when he smote the hand that 
fed him.” 

Pontiac heard what he said, for he immedi¬ 
ately gave the assurance Bob requested. 

“ If others have come with you to bring the 
white girl back, they, too, shall not be harmed 
until they have reached the swift water. Be¬ 
cause they are your friends, Pontiac has said 
this. So let them appear. They shall walk 
among us in safety, for the word of the chief 
is given.” 

But, though Bob raised his voice and called, 
none of the other four cared to accept the in¬ 
vitation to come into the village and meet the 
sachem of the Sacs. 

Perhaps it was just as well. Both Simon 



334 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Kenton and Pat O’Mara were well-known In¬ 
dian fighters, and belonged to a class of men 
who threatened to be thorns in the side of Pon¬ 
tiac in his ambitions designs to head a new con¬ 
federation of tribes. 

Doubtless they would be quickly recognized 
by some of the Indians present from other 
tribes; and even the word of Pontiac might not 
keep these warriors from seeking to avenge 
their kin who had fallen in times past before 
the rifles of Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton and 
their fellow borderers. 



CHAPTER XXX 


SAFE AT LAST 

“We must get away from here without de¬ 
lay, Sandy,” said the elder of the young pio¬ 
neers, after exchanging a few more words with 
Pontiac. 

“ Shall we accept the offer of Pontiac,” 
asked Sandy, “ and make for the river under 
the guard of his men? ” 

“ No,” replied Bob, quickly; “ for many rea¬ 
sons that must not be. He has promised to 
give us a totem flag that will warn any wander¬ 
ing band of Indians we may happen to meet 
that we are friends of the great Pontiac, and 
must not be disturbed. And I have promised 
him that it shall always be kept in our own 
cabin, only to be shown in case of any up¬ 
rising. ’ ’ 

“ Then we must try to find Kenton, Pat and 
Blue Jacket? ” questioned Sandy, who was 
fairly wild to be away; for he seemed to fear 
lest their late good fortune turn out to be a 
dream, from which they might be rudely awa¬ 
kened. 


335 


336 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


“ Yes,” Bob went on; “ and if we go soon I 
believe we will run across them at the place 
Kenton appointed. They will wait there for us 
the balance of the night, I feel sure.” 

“ What do you think they believed must have 
happened, Bob? ” Kate in turn asked. 

“ Who can say? ” her brother answered, 
shaking his head, as though puzzled. “ Fancy 
how astonished they must have been when all 
this racket broke out, before they could make 
ready to start the fires, or Blue Jacket get 
among the lodges to steal Kate, here, away. 
And then, if Kenton was near enough to see 
Pontiac take our hands in his, how he must 
have stared! ” 

“ But it seems all for the best, to me,” said 
Sandy, softly; “ even my foolish rashness in 
firing without thinking. We have made a 
powerful friend in Pontiac, and perhaps saved 
our mother and father from the doom that 
comes to so many settlers in the wilderness. 
And here is Kate given over to our charge with¬ 
out either of us having to shoot down a single 
Indian. Yes, Heaven was kind to us.” 

“ Here comes the great sachem, and bearing 
in his hand the totem flag which is to stand be¬ 
tween us and harm,” remarked Bob, as he saw 



SAFE AT LAST 


337 


Pontiac approaching them, followed by a ret¬ 
inue of jostling braves and chiefs. 

The object which he thrust into the hand of 
Bob was a beautifully made wampum belt that 
had been attached to a stick. It was of unusual 
wideness, and the symbols represented in its 
barbaric splendor undoubtedly told a story 
that every warrior could readily understand. 

It seemed as though every brave in the great 
Seneca village had gathered to hear what the 
chief among ten thousand Indians had to say, 
as he presented this badge of friendship to the 
young pioneers. Some scowled as they sur¬ 
veyed the palefaces; but the majority seemed 
friendly, because they realized that as Indians 
they owed a debt of gratitude to the white boy 
who had saved the life so valuable to their 
cause. 

“ Hear! ” said Pontiac, elevating his won¬ 
derful voice, even as he raised his dusky arm 
with the air of a king, “ these are the friends 
of Pontiac. Let no Indian lift a hand against 
them, or dare to follow as they pass over the 
back trail to the swift water. Where this totem 
hangs, that cabin is secure from the torch, 
those inmates safe from the hatchet, the flaming 
arrow, the knife. So long as Pontiac lives let 



338 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


there be peace between the red men and those 
who bear the name of Armstrong. I have 
spoken. ” 

Once again he thrust out his hand, and 
gravely shook that of each of the whites, not 
even forgetting Kate. And, in the stirring 
times to come, when the whole border would 
ring with the wonderful, masterful ability of 
this organizer and red leader, perhaps there 
would arise days of alarm when Bob and Sandy 
would rejoice to know that the word of a chief 
may never be broken. 

So they took their parting look at the village 
on the Great Lakes, and plunged into the for¬ 
est. Not a single brave dared to follow them, 
so great was their fear and respect for the 
mighty sachem of the Sacs. 

Straight to the meeting-place of the five 
chestnuts Bob led the way. Unerringly he took 
his companions there, and at the first signal call 
Kenton and the other three made their appear¬ 
ance. 

“ What does this magic mean? ” asked the 
borderer, when he saw who was the companion 
of the Armstrong boys. 

“ Sure it makes me think I do be draming! ” 
declared Pat O’Mara, as he wrung the hands 



SAFE AT LAST 


339 


of those he loved so well; nor did Kate hesi¬ 
tate to throw her arms about the neck of this 
faithful friend of her parents, so wild with de¬ 
light was she to see some one from home. 

“ Sandy did it,” replied Bob, hastily, only 
too glad to tell what a wonderful change in 
their fortunes the hasty act of his brother had 
effected. “ He stopped Larue from bringing 
down a club on the head of Pontiac as the chief 
sat on a log, lost in thought. And, because of 
that, Pontiac has called us his friends. This 
totem flag will warn every red-skinned warrior 
to injure us at the risk of making the chief his 
deadly foe. And the Armstrong cabin will 
never be put to the torch, or a single inmate 
harmed by an Indian so long as Pontia<j lives! ” 

Loud were the expressions of astonishment 
on the part of the others. Kenton, who saw 
himself reflected on a small scale in the quick¬ 
tempered Sandy, grasped hold of the boy, and 
shook him almost fiercely by the hand; after 
which Pat and Abijah, yes, even the undemon¬ 
strative Blue Jacket, followed suit. 

“ It seems almost too good to be true,” cried 
the delighted Kenton. “ Not but that it would 
have been a great thing for the struggling bor¬ 
der settlements if Pontiac had been slain here 



340 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


and now; yet how wonderfully that shot won 
our cause. But what is this you tell us of La¬ 
rue? We left him yet a prisoner in the cavern 

/ 

back of the cataract. We must see to that! ” 

He immediately started for the stream, and, 
as it would not be much out of their route, as 
they headed for the far-distant Ohio, both boys 
were quite willing. Besides, they were curious 
to learn just how the wily French trapper had 
slipped his bonds. 

On the road to the waterfall Kenton asked 
many questions. He, together with his com¬ 
panions, had been stunned when the uproar 
burst forth, just before they were ready to 
begin operations. But all was made plain now, 
and, while Simon Kenton would have been hap¬ 
pier had he found himself in the thick of the 
fray, he could not complain at the way things 
had turned out. 

They found the two French trappers still 
where they had been left. All they would say 
was that Larue had seemed to suddenly break 
loose, and had basely left them, possibly in his 
haste to reach the village and give the alarm, 
not wishing to linger long enough to effect their 
release. 

“ The tricky Frenchman rolled into this pool 



SAFE AT LAST 


341 


of water, and let his bonds soak,” said Kenton, 
after he had made an examination. “ When 
wet, the deerskin thongs stretched enough for 
him to work loose. He was afraid we might 
come back and secure him again, so he fled with¬ 
out stopping to so much as lend a helping hand 
to his mates.” 

“ Yes, and upon reaching the village he must 
have seen Pontiac sitting there alone,” said 
Bob, in turn. “ Remembering how the great 
chief had struck him in the face, and humiliated 
him at the grand council under the big oak, he 
was unable to resist the temptation to creep up 
and try to obtain revenge. In doing it Larue 
never suspected that he was playing right into 
our hands.” 

“ If the Indians only knew that we listened 
to what was said at that same council,” re¬ 
marked Kenton; they might not be willing 
to let the rest of us escape so easily.” 

“ But what shall we do with these two men? ” 
asked Bob, thoughtfully. “We can’t leave them 
here, for perhaps Larue may be put to the stake 
with the dawn, and the story of their captivity 
would never be known. The Indians avoid this 
spot, Blue Jacket says, as the waterfall is be¬ 
lieved to be haunted by the spirits of their an- 



342 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


cestors, who call out constantly, and try to make 
the red children understand what they are do¬ 
ing in Manitou Land.” 

“ No, we will take them along with us,” de¬ 
termined Kenton. “ Some days hence we can 
let them go free. By that time they could not 
harm us by returning to the Seneca village, and 
telling what they know of the council spies. 

They lost no time in starting. Though Ken¬ 
ton knew that Pontiac’s totem belt would prob¬ 
ably be able to protect them, he was, neverthe¬ 
less, anxious to be well on the way to the Ohio. 

So, for several days they journeyed; after 
which the two French trappers were let go, 
with a warning that they would be roughly 
treated if they ever again showed themselves 
near the settlement on the river bank. 

And one day the little company arrived safely 
at home. Great was the rejoicing of Mrs. Arm¬ 
strong. The entire community gathered around 
that humble home in the clearing to hear the 
story of the wonderful journey. And every 
hand had to touch the wampum belt of Pontiac 
that was to stand between the Armstrongs and 
peril, in case of another Indian uprising. 

Time passed on. It proved too late in the 
fall for the expected flame to develop; and 




SAFE AT LAST 


343 


from their scouts the settlers learned, much to 
their relief, that the uprising had been post¬ 
poned until spring. Of course that did not 
mean they would be free from interference, be¬ 
cause the Shawanees were always on the war¬ 
path, and the hatchet remained dug up between 
them and the encroaching whites. 

Bob and Sandy went on their way, gathering 
the pelts that they found in their traps. Often 
they talked over the adventures that had 
marked their journey to the land of the Great 
Lakes. Sandy was more determined than ever 
to lead the life of an explorer, and follow in 
the footsteps of the bold and resourceful hero 
whom he fairly worshipped, Simon Kenton. 

“ Some day,” he would say, as they thus 
talked and exchanged confidences, “ I mean to 
set eyes on that wonderful river away to the 
west, the mighty Mississippi, under which rest 
the bones of the bold discoverer, De Soto. I 
will never rest happy, Bob, until I can say that 
I have seen the grandest river in all the world. 

“ Well,” replied his brother with a smile, 
“ perhaps I may yet conclude to go with you, 
Sandy. It is time our people knew more about 
what the French traders are doing in that 
region, establishing posts for dealing with the 



344 PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 


Indians. But in a few days, now, we ought to 
hear something of father.’’ 

“ Yes, winter is here, the snow is thick, and 
it is nearly time,” sighed Sandy; “ and let us 
hope the good fortune that followed us all the 
way to the far north, will bring him back to 
mother, safe and sound.” 

Though neither of them could see just how 
their ambition was to be realized, there was a 
way developing, and, in a new story concerning 
the fortunes of Bob and Sandy, to be called: 
“ The Young Pioneers of the Mississippi,” we 
will have considerably more to narrate in con¬ 
nection with the fortunes of the two lads. 

One afternoon there was a loud shout heard 
close to the Armstrong cabin; and a train of 
four horses was discovered heading from the 
main settlement, followed by a score of men 
and women, all greatly excited. 

Of course it was David Armstrong, returned 
with a store of necessities that must delight the 
heart of the good housewife, who, however, was 
ten times happier over the safe home-coming 
of the man she loved so fondly, than because 
of anything the newly-recovered money could 
buy. 

They had a great time of feasting and re- 



SAFE AT LAST 


345 


joicing. The boys were compelled to narrate 
every incident connected with their eventful 
journey in search of Kate; and, as Pat O’Mara 
still hung around, assisting Bob and Sandy dn 
their trapping expeditions, he was able to add 
many little touches to the wonderful story. 

So the winter which they had dreaded so 
much proved to be a period of joy to the whole 
settlement on the Ohio. Mr. Armstrong would 
often take up that magic wampum belt of the 
great sachem, Pontiac, and fondle it reverently, 
as his imagination pictured that stirring scene 
when, with his apparently ill-advised shot, 
Sandy made a friend of the powerful leader, 
and thus insured the safety of those he loved. 



THE END. 







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them and each has several changes of costume, so that 
the happy group can be appropriately clad for the re¬ 
hearsal of any scene or incident in the series. 

ASA HOLMES; Or, At the Cross-Roads. By 
Annie Fellows Johnston. 

With a frontispiece by Ernest Fosbery. 

Large 16mo, cloth, gilt top.$1.00 

“ ‘ Asa Holmes; or, At the Cross-Roads ’ is the most 
delightful, most sympathetic and w T holesome book that 
has been published in a long wdiile.” — Boston Times. 

TRAVELERS FIVE: ALONG LIFE’S HIGH¬ 
WAY. By Annie Fellows Johnston. 

With an introduction by Bliss Carman, and a frontis¬ 
piece by E. H. Garrett. 

Cloth decorative.$1.25 

“ Mrs. Johnston’s . . . are of the character that cause 
the mind to grow gravely meditative, the eyes to shine 
with tender mist, and the heart strings to stir to strange, 
sweet music of human sympathy.” — Los Angeles Graphic. 
THE RIVAL CAMPERS; Or, The Adventures 
of Henry Burns. By Ruel Perley Smith. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 

A story of a party of typical American lads, courageous, 
alert, and athletic, who spend a summer camping on an 
island off the Maine coast. 

THE RIVAL CAMPERS AFLOAT; Or, The 

Prize Yacht Viking. By Ruel Perley Smith. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 

This book is a continuation of the adventures of “ The 
Rival Campers ” on their prize yacht Viking. 

A—3 




L. C. PAGE & COMPANY'S 


THE RIVAL CAMPERS ASHORE 

By Ruel Perley Smith. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 

“ As interesting ashore as when afloat.” — The Interior. 

THE RIVAL CAMPERS AMONG THE 
OYSTER PIRATES; Or, Jack Harvey’s Adven¬ 
tures. By Ruel Perley Smith. Illustrated . $1.50 

“ Just the type of book which is most popular with lads 
who are in their early teens.” — The Philadelphia Item. 

A TEXAS BLUE BONNET 

By Caroline Emilia Jacobs (Emilia Elliott). 

12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

“ The book’s heroine Blue Bonnet has the very finest 
kind of wholesome, honest lively girlishness and cannot 
but make friends with every one who meets her through 
the book as medium.” — Chicago Inter-Ocean. 

BLUE BONNET’S RANCH PARTY 

A Sequel to “A Texas Blue Bonnet.” By Caroline 
Elliott Jacobs and Edyth Ellerbeck Read. 

12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

The new story begins where the first volume leaves off 
and takes Blue Bonnet and the “ We Are Seven Club ” 
to the ranch in Texas. The tables are completely turned: 
Blue Bonnet is here in her natural element, -while her 
friends from Woodford have to learn the customs and 
traditions of another world. 

THE GIRLS OF FRIENDLY TERRACE 

Or, Peggy Raymond’s Success. By Harriet Lum- 
mis Smith. 

12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

This is a book that will gladden the hearts of many 
girl readers because of its charming air of comradeship 
and reality. It is a very interesting group of girls who 
live on Friendly Terrace and their good times and other 
times are graphically related by the author, who shows 
a sympathetic knowledge of girl character. 

A—4 



BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


FAMOUS LEADERS SERIES 

By CHARLES H. L. JOHNSTON 
Each , large 12 mo, cloth decorative , illustrated . $1.50 

FAMOUS CAVALRY LEADERS 

Biographical sketches, with anecdotes and reminiscenses, 
of the heroes of history who were leaders of cavalry. 

“ More of shell books should be written, books that 
acquaint young readers with historical personages in a 
pleasant informal way.” — N. Y. Sun. 

FAMOUS INDIAN CHIEFS 

In this book Mr. Johnston gives interesting sketches of 
the Indian braves who have figured with prominence in 
the history of our own land. 

FAMOUS PRIVATEERSMEN AND ADVEN¬ 
TURERS OF THE SEA 

In this volume Mr. Johnston tells interesting stories 
about the famous sailors of fortune. 

FAMOUS SCOUTS 

It is the kind of a book that will have a great fascina¬ 
tion for boys and young men and while it entertains them 
it will also present valuable information in regard to those 
who have left their impress upon the history of the country. 
— The New London Day. 

THE YOUNG PIONEER SERIES 

By HARRISON ADAMS 

Each, large 12 mo, cloth decorative , illustrated . $1.25 

THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE OHIO; Or, 

Clearing-the Wilderness. 

Boys will follow with ever increasing interest the for¬ 
tunes of Bob and Sandy Armstrong in their hunting'and 
trapping expeditions, and in their adventures with the 
Indians. 

THE PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES; 

Or, On the Trail of the Iroquois. 

In this story are introduced all of the principal charac¬ 
ters of the first volume, and Bob and Sandy learn much 
of life in the open from the French trappers and coureurs 
du hois . 

A—5 




L. C. PAGE & COMPANY'S 


BEAUTIFUL JOE’S PARADISE; Or, The Island 

of Brotherly Love. A Sequel to “ Beautiful Joe.” 
By Marshall Saunders, author of “ Beautiful Joe.” 
One vol., library 12mo, cloth illustrated . . $1.50 

“ This book revives the spirit of ‘ Beautif ul Joe ’ capi¬ 
tally. It is fairly riotous with fun, and is about as unusual 
as anything in the animal book line that has seen the 
light.” — Philadelphia Item. 

’TILDA JANE. By Marshall Saunders. 

One vol., 12mo, fully illustrated, cloth decorative, $1.50 
“ It is one of those exquisitely simple and truthful books 
that win and charm the reader, and I did not put it down 
until I had finished it — honest! And I am sure that every 
one, young or old, who reads will be proud and happy to 
make the acquaintance of the delicious waif. 

“ I cannot think of any better book for children than 
this. I commend it unreservedly.” — Cyrus T. Brady. 

TILDA JANE’S ORPHANS. A Sequel to “■ ’Tilda 

Jane.” By Marshall Saunders. 

One vol., 12mo, fully illustrated, cloth decorative, $1.50 
’Tilda Jane is the same original, delightful girl, and as 
fond of her animal pets as ever. 

“ There is so much to this story that it is almost a novel 
— in fact it is better than many novels, although written 
for only young people. Compared with much of to-day’s 
juveniles it is quite a superior book.” — Chicago Tribune. 

THE STORY OF THE GRAVELYS. By 

Marshall Saunders, author of “ Beautiful Joe’s 
Paradise,” “ ’Tilda Jane,” etc. 

Library 12mo, cloth decorative. Illustrated by E. B. 

Barry.$1.50 

Here we have the haps and mishaps, the trials and 
triumphs, of a delightful New England family. 

BORN TO THE BLUE. By Florence Kimball 
Russel. 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.25 

The atmosphere of army life on the plains breathes on 
every page of this delightful tale. The boy is the son of a 
captain of U. S. cavalry stationed at a frontier post in the 
days when our regulars earned the gratitude of a nation. 

A—6 




BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


IN WEST POINT GRAY 

By F lorence Kimball Russel. 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.50 

“ Singularly enough one of the best books of the year 
for boys is written by a woman and deals with life at West 
Point. The presentment of life in the famous military 
academy whence so many heroes have graduated is realistic 
and enjoyable .”—New York Sun. 

THE SANDMAN: HIS FARM STORIES 

By William J. Hopkins. With fifty illustrations by 
Ada Clendenin Williamson. 

Large 12mo, decorative cover .... $1.50 

“ An amusing, original book, written for the benefit of 
very small children. It should be one of the most popular 
of the year’s books for reading to small children.” — 
Buffalo Express. 

THE SANDMAN: MORE FARM STORIES 

By William J. Hopkins. 

Large 12mo, decorative cover, fully illustrated $1.50 
Mr. Hopkins’s first essay at bedtime stories met with 
such approval that this second book of “ Sandman ” tales 
was issued for scores of eager children. Life on the farm, 
and out-of-doors, is portrayed in his inimitable manner. 

THE SANDMAN: HIS SHIP STORIES 

By Willi-am J. Hopkins, author of “ The Sandman: 
Ilis Farm Stories,” etc. 

Large 12mo, decorative cover, fully illustrated $1.50 
Children call for these stories over and over again.” — 
Chicago Evening Post. 

THE SANDMAN: HIS SEA STORIES 

By William J. Hopkins. 

Large 12mo, decorative cover, fully illustrated $1.50 
Each year adds to the popularity of this unique series 
of stories to be read to the F+tle ones at bed time and at 
other times. 

A—7 



Z. C. PAGE 6- COMPANY'S 


THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE GIRL 

By Marion Ames Taggart. 

One vol., library 12mo, illustrated . . . $1.50 

A thoroughly enjoyable tale of a little girl and her com¬ 
rade father, written in a delightful vein of sympathetic 
comprehension of the child’s point of view. 

“ The characters are strongly drawn with a life-like real¬ 
ism, the incidents are well and progressively sequenced, 
and the action is so well timed that the interest never 
slackens.” — Boston Ideas. 

SWEET NANCY 

The Further Adventures of the Doctor’s Little 
Girl. By Marion Ames Taggart. 

One vol., library 12mo, illustrated . . . $1.50 

In the new book, the author tells how Nancy becomes 
in fact “ the doctor’s assistant,” and continues to shed 
happiness around her. 

NANCY, THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE PART¬ 
NER 

By Marion Ames Taggart. 

One vol., library 12mo, illustrated . . . $1.50 

In Nancy Porter, Miss Taggart has created one of the 
most lovable child characters in recent years. In the 
new story she is the same bright and cheerful little maid. 

NANCY PORTER’S OPPORTUNITY 

By Marion Ames Taggart. 

One vol., library 12mo, illustrated . . . $1.50 

Already as the “ doctor’s partner ” Nancy Porter has 
won the affection of her readers, and in the same lovable 
manner she continues in the new book to press the key¬ 
notes of optimism and good-will. 

ALMA AT HADLEY HALL 

By Louise Breitenbach. 

One vol., 12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

“ This delightful tale of boarding-school life is one that 
cannot fail to appeal to the lover of good things in girls’ 
books. It will take rank for its naturalness and truth.” 
— Portland Press. 

A—8 



it 

BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


GABRIEL AND THE HOUR BOOK 

By Evaleen Stein. 

Small quarto, cloth decorative, illustrated and deco¬ 
rated in colors by Adelaide Everhart . . . $1.00 

Gabriel was a loving, patient, little French lad, who 
assisted the monks in the long ago days, when all the books 
were written and illuminated by hand, in the monasteries. 

“No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the 
elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as 
well as do the stories so admirably told by this author.” 
—- Louisville Daily Courier. 


A LITTLE SHEPHERD OF PROVENCE 

By Evaleen Stein. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated by Diantha H. Marlowe $1.25 
“ The story should be one of the influences in the life 
of every child to whom good stories can be made to 
appeal.” — Public Ledger. 

THE LITTLE COUNT OF NORMANDY 

By Evaleen Stein. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated by John Goss . . $1.25 

“ This touching and pleasing story is told with a wealth 
of interest coupled with enlivening descriptions of the 
country where its scenes are laid and of the people there¬ 
of.” — Wilmington Every Evening. 

ALYS-ALL-ALONE 

By Una Macdonald. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

“ This is a most delightful, well-written, heart-stirring, 
happy ending story, which will gladden the heart of many 
a reader.” — Scranton Times. 

ALYS IN HAPPYLAND. A Sequel to “Alys-All 
Alone.” By Una Macdonald. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated.$1.50 

u The book is written with that taste and charm that 
prepare younger readers for the appreciation of good litera¬ 
ture when they are older.” — Chicago Tribune. 

A—9 



L. C. PAGE &> COMPANY'S 


THE RED FEATHERS. By G. E. T. Roberts. 

Cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.50 

“ The Red Feathers ” tells of the remarkable adventures 
of an Indian boy who lived in the Stone Age, many years 
ago, when the world was young. 

FLYING PLOVER. By G. E. Theodore Roberts. 

Cloth decorative. Illustrated by Charles Livingston 

Bull .$1.00 

Squat-By-The-Fire is a very old and wise Indian who 
lives alone with her grandson, “ Flying Plover/’ to whom 
she tells the stories each evening. 

COMRADES OF THE TRAILS. By G. E. 

Theodore Roberts. 

Cloth decorative. Illustrated by Charles Livingston 

Bull.$1.50 

The story of a fearless young English lad, Dick Ramsey, 
who, after the death of his father, crosses the seas ana 
takes up the life of a hunter in the Canadian forests. 

MARCHING WITH MORGAN. How Donald 

Lovell Became a Soldier of the Revolution. 

By John V. Lane. 

Cloth decorative, illustrated .... $1.50 

This is a splendid boy’s story of the expedition of 
Montgomery and Arnold against Quebec. 

RODNEY, THE RANGER Or, With Daniel 

Morgan on Trail and Battlefield. By John V. 
Lane. 

Cloth decorative, illustrated . . . . $1.50 

Young Rodney Allison, although but fifteen years of 
age, played a man’s part in the troublous times pre¬ 
ceding the American Revolution and in the War itself. 

THE YOUNG APPRENTICE; Or, Allan West’s 

Chum. By Burton E. Stevenson. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

In this book Mr. Stevenson takes up a new branch of 
railroading, namely, the work of the “ Shops.” 

A—10 




BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


THE YOUNG SECTION-HAND; Or, The Ad¬ 
ventures of Allan West. By Burton E. Stevenson. 
Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 

Mr. Stevenson’s hero is a manly lad of sixteen, who is 
given a chance as a section-hand on a big Western rail¬ 
road, and whose experiences are as real as they are thrilling. 

THE YOUNG TRAIN DISPATCHER. By Bur¬ 
ton E. Stevenson. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 

“ A better book for boys has never left an American 
press.” — Springfield Union. 

THE YOUNG TRAIN MASTER. By Burton E. 
Stevenson. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

“ Nothing better in the way of a book of adventure for 
boys.” — Boston Herald. 

CAPTAIN JACK LORIMER ; By Winn Standish. 
Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

Jack is a fine example of the American high-school boy. 
JACK LORIMER’S CHAMPIONS; Or, Sports 
on Land and Lake. By Winn Standish. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

“ It is exactly the sort of book to give a boy interested 
in athletics.” — Chicago Tribune. 

JACK LORIMER’S HOLIDAYS; Or, Millvale 
High in Camp. By Winn Standish. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

"Full of just the kind of fun, sports and adventure to 
excite the healthy minded youngster to emulation. 

JACK LORIMER’S SUBSTITUTE: Or, The Act¬ 
ing Captain of the Team. By Winn Standish. 
Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

On the sporting side, this book takes up football, wres¬ 
tling, and tobogganing. 

JACK LORIMER, FRESHMAN. By Winn 

Standish. 

Square 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 

This book is typical of the American college boys’ life 
and is a lively story. 

A—11 



L. C. PAGE dr* COMPANY'S 


THE LITTLE COUSIN SERIES 


(Trade Mark) 


Each one vol., 12mo, decorative cover, cloth, with full- 
page illustrations in color. Price per volume . $0.60 

By MARY HAZELTON WADE unless otherwise indicated 


Our Little African Cousin 
Our Little Alaskan Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 
Our Little Arabian Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Argentine Cousin 
By Eva Cannon Brooks 
Our Little Armenian Cousin 
Our Little Australian Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 
Our Little Belgian Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Bohemian Cousin 
By Clara V. Winlow 
Our Little Brazilian Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 
Our Little Brown Cousin 
Our Little Canadian Cousin 
By Elizabeth R. Macdonald 
Our Little Chinese Cousin 
By Isaac Taylor Headland 
Our Little Cuban Cousin 
Our Little Danish Cousin 

By Luna May Innes 
Our Little Dutch Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Egyptian Cousin 
By Blanche McManus 
Our Little English Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Eskimo Cousin 
Our Little French Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little German Cousin 
Our Little Grecian Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 


Our Little Hawaiian Cousin 
Our Little Hindu Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Hungarian Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 
Our Little Indian Cousin 
Our Little Irish Cousin 
Our Little Italian Cousin 
Our Little Japanese Cousin 
Our Little Jewish Cousin 
Our Little Korean Cousin 

By H. Lee M. Pike 
Our Little Mexican Cousin 
By Edward C. Butler 
Our Little Norwegian Cousin 
Our Little Panama Cousin 

By H. Lee M. Pike 
Our Little Persian Cousin 

By E. C. Shedd 
Our Little Philippine Cousin 
Our Little Polish Cousin 
By Florence E. Mendel 
Our Little Porto Rican Cousin 
Our Little Portuguese Cousin 
By Edith A. Sawyer 
Our Little Russian Cousin 
Our Little Scotch Cousin 

By Blanche McManus 
Our Little Siamese Cousin 
Our Little Spanish Cousin 
By Mary F. Nixon-Roulet 
Our Little Swedish Cousin 
By Claire M. Coburn 
Our Littie Swiss Cousin 
Our Little Turkish Cousin 


A—12 























































































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